marco

NameTin frame

Artist Isleta Tinsmith

CultureNew Mexican

Date1890 - 1900

Place madeNew Mexico, United States, North America

Mediumtin, glass, paper, solder, paint,

DimensionsOverall: 29 3/4 x 22 13/16 in. (75.5 x 58 cm)

Credit LineGift of Steve and Dottie Diamant

Object numberA.2005.49.6

Collections

Provenancecollection of Steve and Dottie Diamant, owners of Fine Arts of the Southwest

DescriptionLarge tin frame (marco) with fan-shaped corners embossed with small rosettes and two rows of dots. The corners also have vertical scored lines and the original indentations of the tin can tops/bottoms. The acanthus leaves on each side have similar patterns of embossed dots and rosettes. The lunette/corona continues the same embossed designs and also contains some scoring, with an articulated pediment. The four framing panels are reverse-painted glass. The red paint has been removed in a kind of relief with the white paint then painted voer it, showing through the relief brush strokes. The chromolithograph shows Christ floating in space flanked by two floating men, and three figures on the ground below. Below the image is the title "The Glorification of Christ" in French, German, English, and Venetian. It is most likely a Benziger Brothers chromo, a company who mass-produced ecclesiastical goods and sold them through mail-order catalogues, and opened locations in New York, Cincinnati, and Chicago in the 19th century (CG).

This marco is attributable to the Isleta tinsmith, an anonymous tinsmith who was working at Isleta Pueblo from about 1890 to about 1920, and who oral history at Isleta Pueblo remembers as simply "The Mexican." The articulated pediment and reverse-painting on the glass in particular are indicative of this artist's work. This marco has its original soldering intact, and the chromolithograph is original to the piece. There is a similar marco with a similar chromo that went through Santa Fe Art Auction in July 2024. - Carla Gilfillan