Mexican Religious Artwork
and Collectors Items

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Mexican Folk Art Altar Virgin of Guadalupe Saint Michael and Saint Francis This is known either as a tablero or as a retablo (which word also refers to a hand painted picture of a saint). An item like this would have been placed in a private chapel for the use of a family in private worship. All of the figures and hand carved and hand painted. In the center is the Virgin of Guadalupe, and on either side are San Franciso (St. Francis) and San Miguel (St. Michael).

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Virgin of Guadalupe Nicho The Aztec Virgin stands in a nice nicho with Mexican milagros attached around the frame, and it is constructed in the traditional style. It looks much like a traditional antique 19th Century nicho. Milagros, which are the name of the small charms nailed to the frame, are used by people to testify to specific miracles that a saint has done for them. When one asks for a miracle from a saint, such as the Virgin of Guadalupe, one makes a vow, which is known in Spanish as a manda, wherein one promises to go the a shrine or church dedicated to her and leave a milagro there. If the image that is the center of devotion in that shrine or church is inside of a nicho, the milagro would be nailed to the frame in many cases. In this particular piece, however, the idea with these milagros are to portray the prayers that she recieves, represented by the praying figures, and the way that she always watches over us, which is represented by the pair of eyes.

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San Cipriano - Patron Saint of Magicians This statue was made for me by an artist in southern Mexico, and I have an exclusive on these. It is made of solid acrylic resin mixed with ground bone, and it is very study, and solid, and hand painted. We make these nichos - the framed box - which is like a small shrine to house the saint, out of recycled wood, which is then hand painted with acrylic paint.

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Santo Niño de Atocha I bought this statue from a man who used to live in Mexico City and make these there, but he moved to Chihuahua City and is now in the same business. Note the eyelashes, which are real hair. These are exquisitely fashioned and hand painted with great care, by a true artisan. I have a whole lot of these. The Santo Niño de Atocha is one of the most important saints in Mexico. He has several interesting stories and traditions associated with him. He is best known for his two shrines in the Mexican state of Zacatecas: Fresnillo, the home of the “Blue Santo Niño”, and Plateros, the home of the “Pink Santo Niño”. People pray to the Santo Niño for healing, mainly of children, and they bring children’s shoes to his shrines when they make pilgrimages there. This is because they believe that he wears them out at night when he goes walking about on healing missions, secretly visiting sick children while they are asleep in order to heal them. The famous shrine in Chimayo, New Mexico is a Santo Niño shrine, and pilgrims leave baby shoes there.

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San Ramón Nonato San Ramón has become a very popular saint in Mexico, where people appeal to him by way of a spell designed to shut up gossips. In this, one acquires and image of the saint, along with a red votive candle. One prays the prayer to him which one finds on the back of his prayer card or his votive candles, and then one asks him to shut up a particular gossip or group of gossips, and then one takes chewing gum and uses it to press a coin over his mouth. One lights the candle and sets it next to the image on ones altar (this is what curanderas do) or else one sets it in some place where it will not be disturbed. CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE OF OUR RELIGIOUS ART - PAGE THREE < [ 1 ] 2 [ 3 ] [ 4 ] >