(Mexico, late 19th century)

St. Jerome, Kneeling, oil on tin within reverse painted nicho frame with foiled accents, overall 12-1/2 x 10 x 1-1/2 in.

Note: Note from consigner: "Outer border of nicho features reverse painted and foiled accents, drawing attention to the reverent painting within.Paintings done by academic and non-academic artists were used by the Catholic Church as instructional materials of evangelization. This art form flourished in the nineteenth-century New Spain during wars of independence in an era of increasing industrialization. This political situation brought about the secularization of the Church, and the industrialization introduced a new material: Sheets of iron coated with a thin layer of tin, which were used by artists to promote their images of faith and belief. The new and powerful art of retablos was then popularized due to this material?s durability, availability, low cost, and for its compatibility with commercial oil-based pigments attainable in assorted colors. This art tradition documents the people?s glorification of God and search for divine favor. Retablos were, and still are, found in the dwellings of the rich and poor in domestic shrines or displayed on walls of pilgrimage sites."

Provenance: Private Collection, Colorado

retablo with surface dirt and flaking, other wear commensurate with age, glued to tin backing; frame with broken glass insets