Calvario in Ivory
Calvario
Binondo, Manila and San Miguel de Mayumo, Bulacan 1890s
ivory, silver, velvet, silvergilt threads,
baticuling wood, glass, enamels
Cristo::
wingspan: 8" (20 cm)
head to toe: 11" (28 cm)
body: 1 1/2" x 1" (4 cm x 3 cm)
Mater Dolorosa: 12" x 5" x 3 1/2" (30 cm x 13 cm x 9 cm)
Maria Magdalena: 7" x 4" x 3"(18 cm x 10 cm x 8c m)
San Juan Evangelista: 11" x 5" x 4"(28 cm x 13 cm x 10 cm)
Virina: 28" x 20" x 11"(71cm x 51cm x 28 cm)
Base: 7" x 26" x 16" (18 cm x 66 cm x 41 cm)
Opening bid: PHP 800,000
Property from the Don Maximo Viola Collection, San Miguel, Bulacan.
Provenance: Maximo Viola, Descendants of Maximo Viola
About the Work
By Augusto Marcelino Reyes Gonzalez III
Commissioned by D Maximo Viola y Sison (1857– 1933): a contemplative and reflective tabletop “Calvario” tableau. The “Cristo Expirante” has a resigned expression. It has long hair of “jusi” fibers and on its head are a silvergilt crown of thorns and “tres potencias” symbolizing the three powers of the Lord: Authority (Exousia in Greek), Ability (Dunamis in Greek), and Strength (Kratas in Greek), it wears a “tapis” loincloth of silvergilt repousse with flowers and leaves. The cross itself is of kamagong wood with linear lanite inlay terminating in silvergilt repousse “cantoneras” on three of its exposed sides; there are the requisite INRI plaque (“Jesus the Nazarene, King of the Jews,” in unusual silvergilt openwork) surmounting the cross, the reverse–painted red glass sun framed by silver rays above the Cristo, and the silver skull and bones representing Golgotha below the Cristo; the cross exudes silvergilt repousse rays with flowers and leaves which symbolize the Cristo’s divinity. The Cristo is flanked by the two thieves, San Dimas the good thief to the Cristo’s right and Gestas the unrepentant thief to the left, as dictated by tradition; San Dimas gestures towards the Cristo but Gestas ignores both of them; both San Dimas and Gestas are polychrome “de tallado” wooden figures with their carved “tapis” loincloths painted red for some reason. The other principal figures in the tableau are the grieving “Mater Dolorosa” (Mary the Sorrowful Mother) on the left, a silvergilt “rostrillo” (of the distinct 1890s type) around its face and a silvergilt heart pierced by a dagger on its breast, clad in a gold robe and blue cape; a distraught “San Juan Evangelista” (Saint John the Apostle and Evangelist) on the right, a silvergilt “paraguas” halo on its head, clad in a red robe and green cape; and a prostrate and desperate “Santa” Maria Magdalena (Saint Mary Magdalene) at the foot of the cross, a silvergilt “paraguas” halo on its head, clad in a purple robe and yellow cape. All the velvet vestments are embroidered with floral and foliar designs of the 1890s genre. In the tradition of nineteenth century (Victorian) “miniaturismo,” many charming glass baubles, reputedly created by the inmates of the Bilibid Prison (according to the prewar–postwar collector Felipe Kleimpell Hidalgo), dot the base of the tableau. There are country folk: a farmer (well –dressed, looks like a prince), his wife, daughter, and a female vendor with a basket on her head, all wearing cheery dresses. Plants and flowers. There are all kinds of animals: dogs, cats, birds, geese, sheep, goats, even antlered deer. There is a “Roman centurion” on a horse between the Cristo and San Dimas, although the horse looks like anything but one. The surface of the base is textured to simulate earth. Overall, it is a very interesting tableau. “Calvario” tableaux (Calvary scenes) were necessary appurtenances of Roman Catholic evangelization and catechesis in the past centuries. They depicted the Crucifixion: the “Cristo Expirante” (dying) or even the “Cristo Moribundo” (dead) Jesus Christ on the cross, his nearest and dearest --- “Mater Dolorosa” (Mary his Sorrowful Mother), “San Juan Evangelista” (Saint John the Apostle and Evangelist), and “Santa Maria Magdalena” (Saint Mary Magdalene) at the foot of the cross. To the faithful, they were daily reminders of the ultimate sacrifice by Jesus Christ. They were the visualizations of “Semana Santa” (Holy Week), “Viernes Santo” (Good Friday), “Las Siete Palabras” (The Seven Last Words), “La Procesion del Entierro” (Burial Procession), and “El Triduo Pascual” (Easter Triduum), all central themes of Roman Catholicism leading to Easter, the Resurrection of Christ, the most central theme of all.
Lot 139 of the Leon Gallery auction on June 17, 2023. Please see leon-gallery.com/auctions/The-Spectacular-Mid-Year-Auctio... for more information.
Calvario in Ivory
Calvario
Binondo, Manila and San Miguel de Mayumo, Bulacan 1890s
ivory, silver, velvet, silvergilt threads,
baticuling wood, glass, enamels
Cristo::
wingspan: 8" (20 cm)
head to toe: 11" (28 cm)
body: 1 1/2" x 1" (4 cm x 3 cm)
Mater Dolorosa: 12" x 5" x 3 1/2" (30 cm x 13 cm x 9 cm)
Maria Magdalena: 7" x 4" x 3"(18 cm x 10 cm x 8c m)
San Juan Evangelista: 11" x 5" x 4"(28 cm x 13 cm x 10 cm)
Virina: 28" x 20" x 11"(71cm x 51cm x 28 cm)
Base: 7" x 26" x 16" (18 cm x 66 cm x 41 cm)
Opening bid: PHP 800,000
Property from the Don Maximo Viola Collection, San Miguel, Bulacan.
Provenance: Maximo Viola, Descendants of Maximo Viola
About the Work
By Augusto Marcelino Reyes Gonzalez III
Commissioned by D Maximo Viola y Sison (1857– 1933): a contemplative and reflective tabletop “Calvario” tableau. The “Cristo Expirante” has a resigned expression. It has long hair of “jusi” fibers and on its head are a silvergilt crown of thorns and “tres potencias” symbolizing the three powers of the Lord: Authority (Exousia in Greek), Ability (Dunamis in Greek), and Strength (Kratas in Greek), it wears a “tapis” loincloth of silvergilt repousse with flowers and leaves. The cross itself is of kamagong wood with linear lanite inlay terminating in silvergilt repousse “cantoneras” on three of its exposed sides; there are the requisite INRI plaque (“Jesus the Nazarene, King of the Jews,” in unusual silvergilt openwork) surmounting the cross, the reverse–painted red glass sun framed by silver rays above the Cristo, and the silver skull and bones representing Golgotha below the Cristo; the cross exudes silvergilt repousse rays with flowers and leaves which symbolize the Cristo’s divinity. The Cristo is flanked by the two thieves, San Dimas the good thief to the Cristo’s right and Gestas the unrepentant thief to the left, as dictated by tradition; San Dimas gestures towards the Cristo but Gestas ignores both of them; both San Dimas and Gestas are polychrome “de tallado” wooden figures with their carved “tapis” loincloths painted red for some reason. The other principal figures in the tableau are the grieving “Mater Dolorosa” (Mary the Sorrowful Mother) on the left, a silvergilt “rostrillo” (of the distinct 1890s type) around its face and a silvergilt heart pierced by a dagger on its breast, clad in a gold robe and blue cape; a distraught “San Juan Evangelista” (Saint John the Apostle and Evangelist) on the right, a silvergilt “paraguas” halo on its head, clad in a red robe and green cape; and a prostrate and desperate “Santa” Maria Magdalena (Saint Mary Magdalene) at the foot of the cross, a silvergilt “paraguas” halo on its head, clad in a purple robe and yellow cape. All the velvet vestments are embroidered with floral and foliar designs of the 1890s genre. In the tradition of nineteenth century (Victorian) “miniaturismo,” many charming glass baubles, reputedly created by the inmates of the Bilibid Prison (according to the prewar–postwar collector Felipe Kleimpell Hidalgo), dot the base of the tableau. There are country folk: a farmer (well –dressed, looks like a prince), his wife, daughter, and a female vendor with a basket on her head, all wearing cheery dresses. Plants and flowers. There are all kinds of animals: dogs, cats, birds, geese, sheep, goats, even antlered deer. There is a “Roman centurion” on a horse between the Cristo and San Dimas, although the horse looks like anything but one. The surface of the base is textured to simulate earth. Overall, it is a very interesting tableau. “Calvario” tableaux (Calvary scenes) were necessary appurtenances of Roman Catholic evangelization and catechesis in the past centuries. They depicted the Crucifixion: the “Cristo Expirante” (dying) or even the “Cristo Moribundo” (dead) Jesus Christ on the cross, his nearest and dearest --- “Mater Dolorosa” (Mary his Sorrowful Mother), “San Juan Evangelista” (Saint John the Apostle and Evangelist), and “Santa Maria Magdalena” (Saint Mary Magdalene) at the foot of the cross. To the faithful, they were daily reminders of the ultimate sacrifice by Jesus Christ. They were the visualizations of “Semana Santa” (Holy Week), “Viernes Santo” (Good Friday), “Las Siete Palabras” (The Seven Last Words), “La Procesion del Entierro” (Burial Procession), and “El Triduo Pascual” (Easter Triduum), all central themes of Roman Catholicism leading to Easter, the Resurrection of Christ, the most central theme of all.
Lot 139 of the Leon Gallery auction on June 17, 2023. Please see leon-gallery.com/auctions/The-Spectacular-Mid-Year-Auctio... for more information.