New World, Mexico, ca. 1750 CE. A stunning and very large retablo on heavy gauge copper depicting Santa Rita Cascia wearing a nun's habit and gazing upon a large Crucifix in her hands, as Santa Rita was especially devoted to the sufferings of Christ; the thorn piercing her forehead signifies a special story regarding her contemplation of a crucifix (see below). Santa Rita of Cascia (1381 to 1457) was an Italian widow who became an Augustinian nun , canonized in 1900, and known as the "Patroness of Improbable Causes." She is also the patroness of women who have suffered domestic violence. She herself became a nun after eighteen years of abusive marriage. Having respected her parents' wishes to see her married, she obliged to marriage rather than entering an Augustinian convent; however, following her husband's death, she followed her dream to become a nun. This depiction is beautifully painted and features Santa Rita Cascia's characteristic attributes - depicting her contemplating the crucifix with a wound on her forehead. Size: 16" L x 12.5" W (40.6 cm x 31.8 cm)

After Santa Rita had listened to an eloquent sermon about the crown of thorns delivered by Saint James della Marca in 1441, a bizarre physical reaction occurred. According to Gloria Fraser Giffords, "As she knelt in prayer she became acutely conscious of pain, as if a thorn had detached itself from the crucifix she was contemplating and imbedded itself in her forehead. This wound became so offensive that she had to be secluded from the rest, and with the exception of a pilgrimage to Rome during the year of the jubilee in 1450 when the wound healed temporarily, she lived practically as a recluse." (Giffords, "Mexican Folk Retablos"; Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1974, p. 133)

Provenance: private Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA collection

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#124600

Some bending, surface wear with scratches, and areas of oxidation commensurate with age. A nick to the lower left corner. Otherwise the imagery is still vivid and the painting is well executed.