Virgin of Quito
18th century
Medium
Wood, polychromed and gilded; glass eyes; silver halo
Dimensions
Height: 8 1/2 in. (21.6 cm)
Classification
Statuette
Culture
Ecuadorian
Department
The American Wing
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Loretta Hines Howard, 1964
Accession Number
64.164.236a, b
Tags
Art Historical Context
Nestled in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's American Wing, the *Virgin of Quito* is captivating 18th-century Ecuadorian sculpture to Bernardo Legarda, with possible involvement from Miguel de Santiago Carved from wood and standing just 8½ inches tall, this intimate devotional figure exemplifies colonial Latin American artistry. Its surface is richly polychromed—painted in vivid colors—and adorned with gilding, a silver halo, and lifelike glass eyes, techniques that bring the Virgin Mary to vivid, almost miraculous life for worshippers. Crafted in Quito, the heart of Ecuador's Andean colonial ...
About the Artist
Bernardo Legarda|Miguel de Santiago ( | ) · 1731 |1600 –1773 |1699
active 1731–73|17th century