The Virgin of Sorrows

Working around the same time as Pedro de Mena, sculptor José de Mora continued the practice of creating emotive busts of religious figures. Mora's Virgin of Sorrows displays the artist's skillful hand in wood carving, where he manipulated the material to create the likeness of fabric and flesh. The sorrowful expression of the Virgin Mary and her tear-streaked cheeks were meant to inspire feelings of remorse and sympathy in the penitent viewer.