Mexican school; 18th century.
"Saint Francis leading the order".
Oil on canvas
It has tears in the canvas, important losses on the pictorial surface and restorations.
Measurements. 113 x 144,5 cm.
Scene of religious character formed by the presence of four religious, one of them, San Francisco, seems to guide them and he is different from the others for his slightly bigger dimensions and his hairstyle. With one of his hands he points to a phylactery which reads "Similis filio Dei". The other religious who also wear the habit look at St. Francis, and behind them a large legend reads "Although so much fire amazes the third astonishes, because the fourth with his wound is the son of God". Both the words in the phylactery and those on the back of the composition are from the Vulgate.
It is worth noting that during Spanish colonial rule, a mainly religious style of painting was developed, aimed at Christianising the indigenous peoples. Local painters were modelled on Spanish works, which they followed literally in terms of type and iconography. The most frequent models were harquebusier angels and triangular virgins; however, it was not until the early 19th century, at the time of independence and the political opening up of some of the colonies, that several artists began to represent a new model of painting with its own identity.