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Nuestra Señora de Belén
From the collection of Smithsonian American Art Museum. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
The iconography of the Virgin nursing the infant Jesus identifies Mary with the Church. In the same manner that Mary cares for the Christ child, so the Church nurtures its children. Images of the Virgin nursing were popular in the High Middle Ages, particularly in Spain in Catalonia and Valencia. When José Campeche was active in Puerto Rico, Catalonians were bringing to the island artistic influences from the mother country. (Yvonne Lange, “Santos: The Household Wooden Saints of Puerto Rico,” PhD diss., 1975)
Smithsonian American Art Museum’s own descriptionSubjects
Credit lineNuestra Señora de Belén. late 18th century. José Campeche y Jordán, born San Juan, Puerto Rico 1751-died San Juan, Puerto Rico 1809. Smithsonian American Art Museum, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Teodoro Vidal Collection. CC0.
