Fanal with Christ Child as Doctorcito with wedding ribbon

This fanal is provided with a marquetry base. In the inside, Christ Child is sitting as Doctorcito, an iconography depicting the moment He is teaching to the doctors in the Temple. His clothing, handmade with lace, golden braids ribbon, and faux pearl. The outfit is completed with a silk mesh hat, sandals with some beads and silver threads embroidery. A silver filigree wreath holds a group of flowers, blossoms and fabric leaves in addition to offerings in the form of ribbons with printed names.
The Museo de Artes de la Universidad de los Andes, Santiago de Chile, exhibits a group of 16 "fanales". A "fanal" is a structure that consists of a wooden base on which a bell glass or bell jar is mounted, used in Europe during the eighteenth century for scientific and decorative purposes. When transferred to Latin America it takes a totally different character: a “fanal” becomes a devotional object from the moment a religious Christian figure is placed in the inside.