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Object Details
- Artist
- Unidentified
- Luce Center Label
- Devotional figures of the infant Jesus became popular in Puerto Rico during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Santeros carved the faces and hands of the statues realistically and clothed the figures with luxurious fabrics. An unknown craftsman carved this small figure in the act of benediction, or blessing, with an orb in his left hand to symbolize God's dominion over the Earth. The three flame-like shapes around the child's head represent the three parts of the soul: memory, understanding, and will. (Lange, Santos: The Household Wooden Saints of Puerto Rico, PhD diss., 1975)
- Credit Line
- Smithsonian American Art Museum, Teodoro Vidal Collection
- 18th century
- Object number
- 1996.91.52
- Restrictions & Rights
- CC0
- Type
- Sculpture
- Medium
- carved and painted wood and metal
- Dimensions
- 13 3/8 x 5 1/2 x 4 3/8 in. (34.0 x 14.0 x 11.2 cm.)
- See more items in
- Smithsonian American Art Museum Collection
- Department
- Painting and Sculpture
- On View
- Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center, 3rd Floor, 21B
- Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center
- Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center, 3rd Floor
- Smithsonian American Art Museum
- Topic
- Religion\New Testament\Christ
- Emblem\cross
- Record ID
- saam_1996.91.52
- Metadata Usage (text)
- CC0
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/vk755dc7774-8ed0-4b61-8268-26011125aed5
This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Open Access page.
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