Santos in Oaxaca's Ancient Churches

A study of santos in 16th-century and other churches in Oaxaca, Mexico

In Santo Domingo Ocotlán:

Calvary Group: Crucifix and St. John
Calvary Group: Our Lady of Sorrows
Calvary Group: St. Mary Magdalene
Calvary Group: God the Father
Palm Sunday Christ
Saint in fire
St. Joseph
St. Michael
St. Sebastian
Two Dominican saints
Unidentified Franciscan saint
Virgin Mary

Other santos not photographed

God the Father:
Bust of God the Father, looking down from clouds in which are the heads of five angels, orbs terrestris in left hand. The sculpture is in a niche just below the ceiling and above the Calvary scene. The Father is represented as a thin old man in a multicolored robe and with a very realistic body. There is no crown but a large carved, gilded sunburst behind the head.

Site: Church of Santo Domingo Ocotlán.

Location: Above the calvary scene at the south end of the chapel of El Señor de la Sacristía. (see note).

Media and construction: Wood, gesso, paint. Eyes: glass. Parted lips.

Size: Life size.

Comparable santos in Oaxaca: None that we found.

Next: A statue of St. Michael

Previous santo

Introduction to Santo Domingo Ocotlán

Santos Home Page

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.