Novohispanic School; century XVIII. “Virgin refuge of sinnersâ€. Oil on canvas glued to board. It

Novo-Hispanic School; 18th century.
"Virgin refuge of sinners".
Oil on canvas glued to board.
It presents repainting and restorations.
Measurements: 37 x 27 cm.
Refugium Peccatorum, which means Refuge of the sinners, is a roman catholic title for the Blessed Virgin Mary. Its use dates back to Saint Germanus of Constantinople in the 8th century. In the Roman Catholic tradition, Eve is considered to be responsible for the suffering of human beings since their fall and expulsion from paradise, while the Virgin Mary is the source of all healing. She is the new Eve, who cannot eliminate the harm created, but can limit it. Her fullness of grace, her position among Christ's disciples and her title of Mother of God are seen as guarantees that the Virgin Mary is a powerful intercessor. Refugium Peccatorum is one of four Marian invocations in the Litany of Loreto, the others being Salus Infirmorum (healer of the sick), Consolatrix Afflictorum (consoler of the sorrowful) and Auxilium Christianorum (help of Christians). Each invocation extolling Mary's role as the advocate of spiritual and corporal mercy has a rich history, but in general, the notion of asking the Blessed Virgin Mary for help in temporal needs can be traced back to Saints Justin Martyr, Irenaeus and Ambrose of Milan. The 18th century Jesuit preacher Antonio Baldinucci had a particular devotion to the image of the Virgin Mary Refugium Peccatorum in the Church of the Gesu (Frascati) in Italy and commissioned a copy which he considered miraculous and took with him on his travels. The Jesuits spread copies of the image of the Virgin of the Refuge in Mexico in the 19th century, and it began to be depicted in the missions there, often with clouds surrounding the lower part of the image of the Virgin Mary holding the Child Jesus. [In some 19th century images, biblical scenes are included below the image of the Virgin, e.g. Peter's visions, as well as the depiction of a safe harbour. The term "Refugium peccatorum" is also used in other Roman Catholic Marian works of art. For example, there is a marble statue depicting the Virgin Mary on the grand staircase of the ancient municipal palace in Venice, Italy. The name comes from the fact that convicts were allowed to stop in front of the statue of the Virgin Mary to pray for their souls on the way to the gallows.
It is worth mentioning that during Spanish colonial rule, mainly religious painting was developed, aimed at Christianising the indigenous peoples. Local painters were modelled on Spanish works, which they followed literally in terms of type and iconography. The most frequent models were the harquebusier angels and the triangular virgins, however, in the early years of the 19th century, already in times of independence and political openness of some of the colonies, several artists began to represent a new model of painting with its own identity, as in this particular case. In this work we can appreciate different images in which popular types are represented, carrying out tasks related to the local tradition.