Immaculate Conception

According to the dogma established since the early times of Christianity, Mary’s conception, despite having been carnal, had been free of all sin. The Virgin, then, was above original sin. 

The Franciscans and Jesuits claimed that the Virgin had been conceived free of sin. The Dominicans refuted this belief. 

In New Granada, numerous images were composed with this iconography. 

This has changed over the years. In most representations, she is shown according to chapter twelve of the Apocalypse: “a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars”. 

In this painting, Mary, located in the center, is shown dressed in a white tunic, a symbol of purity, and a blue cloak. 

The Virgin is crowned by twelve stars, an element that has been interpreted as a reference to the twelve tribes of Israel, the twelve apostles, or the privileges that God granted Mary, according to a sermon given by Saint Bernard. 

Supported by four cherubs, at the feet of the Virgin is a moon, an element that is usually associated with evil. 

In the lower left, you can see a snake, an animal that is usually related to original sin. Her presence under the figure of Mary represents the immaculate character of the mother of Jesus. 

This image is one of the few that has the signature of one of the most important painters of the colonial period: Gregorio Vásquez de Arce y Ceballos (1638-1711). Much of the visual production of New Granada in the second half of the 17th century is attributed to his hand.