Virgin of the Rosary Crowned by Angels

This Marian prayer is based on the repetition of recitations related to the mysteries of the Virgin. Promoted since the Middle Ages by the Carthusian Order, the practice spread among the mendicant orders and generated a high production of images of the Virgin of the Rosary. 

Here, Mary carries a white veil over her head and wears a pink robe and blue mantle with which she is usually depicted, although in the latter, she is shown sprinkled with stars. She holds a scepter in her right hand and, in the other, the almost naked Child Jesus and a rosary.

To New Granada as well as to the rest of Spanish America, the invocation of the Virgin of the Rosary came from the hand of the Dominicans who, from the 15th century, promoted her cult. For this reason, it was one of the most widespread images in colonial imagery.

In the image, Mary is standing on a cluster of clouds from which emerge five cherubs, figures alluding to the holiness of the Virgin and Child.

Two child angels crown Mary. The angel on the left holds the crown in one hand, and in the other he carries a lily, a symbol of the Virgin’s purity. The one on the right, on the other hand, bears a palm leaf associated with victory. 

On a copper background, a halo of straight and wavy golden rays surrounds the two holy figures. At the same time, these have decorations that imitate plant shapes as ornamentation. 

Copper paintings like this were quite common in northern Europe, especially in cities with a large diffusion of engraving or goldsmithing workshops, such as Antwerp. Due to their technical complexity and rarity, these works were a luxury in New Granada. 

During the 17th century, following the postulates of the Council of Trent, it was promoted that images serve as an exemplary model of life and teaching of virtues. Here, the presence of the Virgin would teach the chastity that, according to the Church, women should maintain.