Brooklyn Museum: American Art: Virgin of Pomata with St. Nicholas Tolentino and St. Rose of Lima

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Virgin of Pomata with St. Nicholas Tolentino and St. Rose of Lima

The town of Pomata, situated above Lake Titicaca in the highlands of Peru, was once a popular Christian pilgrimage shrine. In this painting, Our Lady of Pomata is depicted as a statue--a carved figure crowned and dressed in lavish garments and adorned with precious materials--that stood on the side altar of the parish church. This type of iconic image, found throughout Latin America, is known as a statue painting. A rosary encircles the hands of the Virgin, who holds a tiny doll-like Child Jesus, also crowned and finely dressed. Pearls were among the sensational finds of the Spanish in the New World, and swags of them, caught with huge rosettes, adorn the figure. She stands on an altar, covered with white lace-trimmed cloth, whose red drapery trimmed in gold has been opened for worship. Two angels hold the drapery, while three others appear at her feet. A nun and a monk flank the altar, their hands clasped in prayer.

Medium: Oil on canvas
Place Made: Cuzco, Peru
Dates: 1700-1750
Dimensions: 26 x 21 in. (66 x 53.3 cm)
Collections: American Art
Museum Location: This item is on view in Luce Visible Storage and Study Center, 5th Floor
Accession Number: 41.1275.400
Credit Line: Museum Expedition 1941, Frank L. Babbott Fund
Image: Overall, 41.1275.400.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph