Unidentified artists
Pax with the Assumption and Coronation of the Virgincirca 1575-1578

On view:

Geffen Galleries, Picturing the Divine in Spanish America

Gilded tabernacle reliquary with hardstone columns, rock crystal finials, and a central carved relief of a standing female figure surrounded by putti, set against a jeweled mosaic background

Gilt brass reliquary with a house-shaped form, featuring a central arched door with hinged clasp, flanked by two small cast figures in classical robes on stepped pedestals, decorative bosses across the surface, scrolling foliate cresting at the roofline, and three faceted rock crystal finials at the apex and corners.

Gilt brass barometer with a central glass tube flanked by a decorative column with figural mounts, topped by two faceted rock crystal spheres; an elaborate scrolling bracket extends to the left, photographed against a black background.

Gilt metal portable altar or reliquary set within a house-shaped ebonized case lined with crimson velvet. Central arched relief panel in white and blue depicts a standing robed figure surrounded by smaller figures, framed by classical columns, a broken pediment with cherub heads, and scrollwork. Small gilt figures flank the sides; gilded cherubs decorate the base.

Reverse side of a house-shaped wooden panel with dark finish, showing a vertical support strut, two brass hardware fittings, an auction house label with barcode, and a torn paper fragment.

Artist or Maker: Unidentified artists
Title: Pax with the Assumption and Coronation of the Virgin
Place Made: Mexico City
Date Made: circa 1575-1578
Medium: Silver gilt, rock crystal (quartz), wood, feathers, and enamel
Dimensions: 12 3/4 × 8 7/8 × 5 3/4 in. (32.39 × 22.54 × 14.61 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of the 2024 Collectors Committee
Accession Number: M.2024.36
Classification: Sculpture
Collecting Area: Latin American Art
Curatorial Notes: The pax is an object decorated with Christian subjects and used during the “kiss of peace” ritual as part of the Mass. This remarkable example was created by Indigenous artists during the turbulent years after the Conquest, likely in a school established by Franciscan missionaries to educate the Indigenous nobility. It combines precious metals, iridescent feathers, wood micro-carvings, and rock crystal. Long used by Indigenous artists and invested with sacred meanings, these materials were redeployed after the Conquest to create Christian objects, demonstrating an important level of artistic agency and resilience under Spanish rule.

This pax reflects a sophisticated understanding of the power of materials to bridge two symbolic universes. Conceived as a classical temple, the central image represents the coronation of the Virgin flanked by a jubilant cohort of angels, while the tympanum includes a depiction of God the Father—all delicately carved in wood and set against a flickering feather background. Finely cast figures of Saints Peter and Paul guard the Virgin’s heavenly ascent, surrounded by lively cherubs. Rock crystal, associated in Europe with the eternal nature of the Virgin and Christ, is used for the columns, finials, and cabochons, including one with the Latin phrase “Pax Tecum” (Peace be with you).

Ilona Katzew

2024
Provenance: Leopold Hirsch (1858?–1932; financier, diamond mining, and art collector); Christie’s, London, May 7–9, 1934, lot 114 (sold as “Spanish” on May 8); Lionel “Spanish” Harris (1862–1943; proprietor of London’s Spanish Art Gallery and collector of gold and silver ecclesiastic objects), 1934; anonymous sale; Christie’s, Geneva, November 18, 1981, lot 83; Richard Stern (1920–1991; silver expert and collector), Geneva, 1981; by descent to his family, Geneva; Christie’s, London, July 8, 2021, lot 16 (bought in); Christie’s, London and New York (private sale), 2024; LACMA 2024.
Selected Bibliography: Ilona Katzew, “A World of Brilliance: The Mexican Pax”, Unframed, April 29, 2024, https://unframed.lacma.org/2024/04/29/world-brilliance-mexican-pax

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