Santos in Oaxaca's Ancient ChurchesA study of santos in 16th-century and other churches in Oaxaca, Mexico
By Claire and Richard Stracke Funded by a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation. In San Pedro y San Pablo
Etla:
|
Christ Seated in the
Pretorium ("Pensive Christ") |
Christ
Seated in the Pretorium: The statue sits almost casually on a column set on an andas. The skin has a greenish tinge. The crown of thorns is in the basketweave pattern. The right hand is positioned as if to hold a scepter, but there is none. Blood flows down the left hand as if from the face, though the cheek does not actually touch the hand. The garments are fancier recreation of the clothing of a Mexican laborer. A tasselled gold rope replaces the usual leather belt. Local Name: El Dios de la
Peña. Basis for Identification: Seated, blood streaming from the crown of thorns (basketweave pattern), red (nearly purple) cape, long white trousers edged in cutwork, white shirt, cheek resting on left hand. Site: Church of San Pedro y San Pablo Etla. Location: Second bay in the north wall of the nave (see note). Media and construction: Wood, gesso, paint, polyester garments. Eyes: glass, with lashes. Hair: wig. Size: Life size. Comparable santos in Oaxaca: Ejutla, Guelavia, Tamazulapan, Teitipac1, Teitipac2, Teposcolula, Tilantongo, Tlacolula, Yanhuitlán. External Links: Next: In
this same bay, a group of
santos of the Soledad,
another Virgin Mary, and Christ in the purple cloak Introduction to San Pedro y San
Pablo Etla Note: On
this
site,
references to the cardinal directions always assume
that the main altar is at the east end of the church,
the narthex or entry area at the west end, and the two
walls
of the nave on the
north and south. (The
nave is the long central section.)
Actual orientations may differ. The photo shown here is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. You are free to share or remix it on two conditions: first, that you attribute it to the photographers, Claire and Richard Stracke, without implying any approval of your work on their part; second, that if you alter, transform, or build upon this photo, you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similar license to this one. |