The early medieval period saw a remarkable rise in the devotion to the Virgin Mary, coinciding with the edification of cathedrals throughout Europe. Images of the crowning of the Holy Virgin began to appear and the proliferation of the iconography of the Virgin through numerous depictions not only as Mother of God but also Mother of Mankind and Queen of Heaven was a celebrated theme by great masters throughout the ages, such as Gentile da Fabriano, Fra Angelico, Peter Paul Rubens, Diego Velázquez and Bernardo Bitti who lived and worked in Peru in the late sixteenth-century. Throughout Spain’s vast empire in the Americas, images of the crowning of the Virgin proved a potent symbol of the Church and its Counter-Reformation assault against heresy, and renderings of this theme were highly regarded by artists throughout the Viceroyalty of Peru in cities such as Cuzco, Lima, Quito, and Potosí.
The present work, executed in the 18th century is a lavish composition employing the meticulous application of gold on the holy figures so typical of the Cuzco school style of painting at that time. Here, the Virgin’s dazzling mantle and cloak are covered in delicate floral motifs; the rays around her head create a subtle pattern that forms her halo as she holds the Christ child. Saints Dominic and Francis are on either side of the Virgin and Child, robed in richly detailed habits of their respective orders in adoration of this holy manifestation. Archangels attend the Virgin on either side, as though to announce the good news of humanity’s salvation through her. The Holy Trinity is pictured above, occupying their place in the Heavenly realm. While many European models often portrayed the Trinity more literally as Father (an older man), Son (a youthful man), and Holy Spirit (in the form of a dove), extant works by Andean painters of the time demonstrated a tendency to depict the Trinity in the form of three identical figures, as seen in the present work. Here, the Holy Trinity is pictured as three young men, seated upon their heavenly thrones, the central figure gazes out upon the viewer, as if confirming for us Mary’s majesty and her unparalleled status in Christian theology.