Portable Altar (Retablo) with St. John the Baptist

NamePortable Altar, Retablo; Shrine

Artist Artist Not Recorded

Dateca. 1940

Place madePotosí, Bolivia, South America

MediumWood, fabric, gesso, paint, metal

DimensionsOverall: 15 3/16 x 7 7/8 x 5 1/2 in. (38.5 x 20 x 14 cm)

Credit LineMuseum of International Folk Art, IFAF Collection, purchase with funds from Hank Lee and Paul Bonin Rodriguez, FA.2009.52.1

Object numberFA.2009.52.1

Collections

Andean Folk Art

DescriptionWood box with two doors on front, the inside with yellow ground painted with pink flowers. Inside the box back is painted blue, with a sculpture of a haloed male figure (St. John the Baptist) wearing skins and cape with red interior. He holds a sculpture of a lamb in his proper right hand and a long staff with a red and gold pennant in his left. He stands on green base. Two gold and red crosses lean up against the box walls and his legs.