Description:

Latin America, Mexico, Spanish Colonial, ca. 18th to 19th century CE. A pair of wood santo heads - one is carved from wood and the other is more ornate with inlaid glass eyes and painted plaster. The bloodied and bearded head indicate Jesus Christ, while the other is perhaps a saint, the head crowned by a pageboy-style coiffure. These heads were once part of religious figures that 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 - such as Mary, Christ, and the numerous saints. Size of Christ head: 2" L x 2" W x 3" H (5.1 cm x 5.1 cm x 7.6 cm); 5.5" H (14 cm) on included custom stand.

Provenance: private New York, New York, USA collection; ex-Mathews collection, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA

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#181291

  • Condition: Heads are fragments from larger figures as shown. Chipping and losses to plaster / pigment layers on Christ head, especially coiffure. Chips to wood on to beard and ears. Other head has stable pressure fissures and chips to high pointed areas. Pigments are worn away, but nice patina to wood surface.

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September 14, 2023 8:00 AM MDT
Louisville, CO, US

Artemis Fine Arts

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