Saint Louis of France with the Virgin Mary

1767-1824

Samaniego y Jaramillo, Manuel (painter)

Denver, CO, USA, Denver Art Museum (current location)

This painting of the Virgin Mary appearing to Saint Louis of France was designed for travel. Painted in Ecuador or perhaps Bolivia, the painting hangs from a wooden support so can be rolled up and fitted into the carrying case attached to its base. In the painting, the Virgin Mary, dressed in blue and white robes, and crowned as Queen of Heaven, appears to the French king. Mary’s role as Queen of Heaven was frequently depicted in Spanish America.

At the top of this painting, the Virgin of the Immaculate Conception, identifiable by her crown of twelve stars, gestures to the earthly saint. Fleurs-de-lys on his clothes identify him as a French king. He is King Louis IX (r. 1226-1270) who was believed to have found Jesus’ crown of thorns during a crusade to Jerusalem, which he carries on a cloth. Louis died of the plague in Tunis, while fighting in a crusade against Muslims, whom the Christians considered infidels. He was canonized by the Catholic Church in the late 13th century.

The painting was collected in Bolivia, but its style has led some experts connect it with the work of Manuel de Samaniego y Jaramillo (ca. 1767- ca. 1826), a painter from Quito, Ecuador.

The painting was done on canvas without a support. A second artisan likely carved the case, a cylindrical tube made out of wood.

Today, little is known about this work, except that it was designed to be portable. As such, it could have accompanied a traveling priest, serving parishes in rural areas. Or perhaps it was a devotional object made for a military officer or merchant, both of whom would be likely travelers.

The idea of a sudden appearance of a holy figure—as the Virgin appeared to the King—is captured by this portable image. Apparitions of otherworldly beings were frequently celebrated in the visual culture of Europe and Spanish America. The narrative here was a European one, and it served to validate the idea of unexpected otherworldly visions. However, in Spanish America, it was not lofty monarchs who most often received celebrated visions, but indigenous or mestizo men. The Virgin of Guadalupe, who appeared to Juan Diego in central Mexico, is one of the best known examples.

Reproduced courtesy of the Denver Art Museum. Museum Purchase with funds from Lorraine Higby and the New World General Accession Fund

Dana Leibsohn and Barbara E. Mundy.
Vistas: Visual Culture in Spanish America, 1520-1820. http://www.fordham.edu/vistas, 2015.

Kennedy, Alexandra. 2002. Arte de la real Audiencia de Quito, siglos XVII-XIX. Hondarribia, Spain: Editorial Nerea.

Vargas, J.M. 1975. Manuel de Samaniego y su Tratado de Pintura. Quito: Editorial Santo Domingo.