Santos in Oaxaca's Ancient Churches

A 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 Santiago Tilantongo:

Christ
Christ: Ecce Homo
Christ seated in the pretorium
Crucifix 1
Crucifix 2
Holy Week Group (3 santos)
Our Lady of Sorrows (Soledad)
St. James as Moor-slayer 1
St. James as Moor-slayer 2
St. James as Moor-slayer 3
St. James as pilgrim
St. Sebastian
Virgin Mary 1
Virgin Mary 2

Virgin Mary

Virgin Mary:
The gesso is so thin that one can see the grain of the wood in the face. Yet the skin has a natural look, and the cheeks have a blush.

Basis for Identification: White dress and veil, blue mantle.

Site: Church of Santiago Tilantongo.

Location: First bay of the south wall of the nave (see note).

Media and construction: Wood, gesso, paint, fabric garments. Eyes: glass, with lashes. Hair: wig over bald head. Closed mouth.

Size: About feet (105 cm.)

Comparable santos in Oaxaca: Achiutla, Etla1 (in the Soledad group) Etla2, Guelavia1, Guelavia2, Nochixtlán, Ocotlán, Teotitlán, Teotitlán2Tilantongo2, Yanhuitlán1, Yanhuitlán2, Zimatlán.

External Link:
Wikimedia Commons: Statues of Virgin Mary in Mexico.

This is the last santo on the tour.

Previous santo

Introduction to Tilantongo

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.