Our Lady Of Guadalupe

Words: 1554
Pages: 7

#1. The artist of the Our Lady of Guadalupe is unknown. The medium used is also unknown, except for the canvas, which was made of Tilma, a common cloak that was commonly worn by native Mexicans in the sixteenth century. The pigmentation is also unknown, tests have been run to see what type of paint was used and all tests have come back inconclusive, leaving the creation of the painting a mystery. However, the date that the painting was created is known, the date that the Our Ladt of Guadalupe was created was on the morning of December 12, 1531, in Tepeyac Hill, Mexico City. Saint Juan Diego, canonized on July 31, 2002, by Pope John Paul II, was the only witness to the creation of this artwork. Saint Juan Diego, is a native Mexican …show more content…
The Lady of Guadalupe, is a painting of an unknown pigment, on a Tilma canvas (Mesoamerican clothing) the size of the painting is seventy by forty-one, and one-third inches. There are two characters depicted in the painting, one is the virgin Mary and the other person at the bottom center is an angel. The virgin Mary is depicted standing wearing a cloak over her body and head. She is standing upright with her arms and hands in front of her, with her hands together as to signify that she is praying. Her head is tilted slightly right with her eyes open, and her mouth shut. The clothing itself is two pieces that are joined together in the center, which is very uncommon for any era of painting. The canvas itself is very unusual in of itself, because the fabric that it is made of only has a shelf life of roughly thirty years and this has survived without signs of decomposition for four-hundred years. The colors have not faded or chipped, which is peculiar, because copies of the painting have all since been lost. The heavy texture of the cloth, is not the best for painting. It would absorb the paint instead of being a good base to pain upon, but experts have said that there seems to be only one brush stroke per line and color, which is odd, because it would take multiple strokes just to get the canvas not to absorb the paint. This only adds more mystery to the painting itself. The fact that it has survived for so long without proper steps into ensuring its conservation has only recently been implemented. The painting has survived bombings, war and even a chemical spill without any signs of any damage, which aids to it being a miracle. That, in fact, it is viewed by the Catholic Church as an authentic infallible miracle. She has a purple sash around her waist that signifies that she is bearing a child. The Lady of Guadalupe also has rays of light beaming out from behind her from every