Colonial school; XVIII century. "San Miguel". Carved and polychrome wood.

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OLD MASTERS

By Setdart Auction House

Oct 20, 2021

Set Reminder 2021-10-20 07:30:00 2021-10-20 07:30:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : OLD MASTERS https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/setdart-auction-house/old-masters-7700
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• Lot Description
  Colonial school; XVIII century. "San Miguel". Carved and polychrome wood. Measures: 64 x 36 x 21 cm. Wood carving representing the archangel San Miguel in full body, dressed in armor, with large wings spread, stepping on the devil with his left foot, defeated at his feet. He raises his right hand, in which he brandishes a sword with which he prepares to finish off the beast. Formally, the beauty and grace of the figure of the saint contrasts with the horrendous and grotesque face of the demon, which stands out for the expressiveness of its large eyes and open mouth. A resource that accentuates the drama and the theatricality of the scene, following the taste of the time. This is a dynamic and naturalistic work, with a classic work of anatomy. According to tradition, Saint Michael is the head of the heavenly militia and defender of the Church. Precisely for this reason he fights against the rebellious angels and the dragon of the Apocalypse. He is also psychopomp, that is to say, he leads the dead and weighs the souls on the day of the Last Judgment. Scholars have linked his cult to that of several gods of antiquity: Anubis in Egyptian mythology, Hermes and Mercury in classical mythology, and Wotan in Norse mythology. In the West, the cult of St. Michael began to develop from the 5th and 6th centuries, first in Italy and France, and then spreading to Germany and the rest of Christendom. The kings of France gave him a particular veneration from the 14th century, and the Counter-Reformation made him the head of the church against the Protestant heresy, giving a new impulse to his cult. St. Michael the Archangel is therefore a military saint, and therefore patron of knights and all trades related to weapons, as well as with the scales, for his role as apocalyptic judge. It is worth mentioning that, during the Spanish colonial domination, a mainly religious painting was developed, aimed at Christianizing the indigenous peoples. The local painters were modeled on Spanish works, which they followed literally in terms of types and iconography. The most frequent models were the harquebusier angels and the triangular virgins, however, in the first years of the 19th century, already in times of independence and political opening of some of the colonies, several artists began to represent a new model of painting with its own identity.
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