**Originally Listed At $800**

New World, Mexico, Spanish Colonial style, ca. 19th century CE. A striking, hand-carved wooden santo figure depicting the Virgin Mary, her hands raised in blessing. She is dressed in white robes with a pink and blue cloak wrapped around her body. She has a collar of red and gold. Brown glass forms her eyes, giving her a sensitive gaze. An openwork tin halo is attached to the back of her head and she stands on a tiered wooden pedestal painted with flowers. The pedestal may be slightly newer than the figure, but both are 19th century. Size: 7.25" L x 7" W x 16.75" H (18.4 cm x 17.8 cm x 42.5 cm)

Santos played an important role in bringing the Catholic Church to the New World with the Spanish colonists. These religious figures were hand-carved and often furnished with crowns, jewels, and other accessories, usually funded by religious devotees, and were used as icons to explain the major figures - Mary, Christ, and the saints - to new, indigenous converts. Likewise, they served as a connection to the Old World for Spanish colonists far from home. They became a folk art tradition in the Spanish New World, from modern day Guatemala to as far north as New Mexico and Colorado. Many of them were lovingly cared for over the years, with repairs and paint added as they aged, and played an active part for a long time in the religious life of their communities.

Provenance: ex Francis & Lilly Robicsek Collection, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA

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#120592

Extensive craquelure on all painted surfaces. Losses to paint on surface, especially around the lower part of the robes. Wax in areas used for reattaching her hands and head.