Ornament to evangelize. The study of five Franciscan altarpieces made in Colonial Yucatan

Abstract

For almost three centuries, the Franciscan order maintained the exclusive right to evangelize the Yucatan peninsula. The purposes had risen an architecture and sacred art with a peculiar characteristic until the end of the 18th century. The Art was adapted by the poor economic and material resources in the region. Also, the historical events seen in the missionary progress influenced the Art as the process of secularization. The plagues, epidemics, famines, and the escapes of the Mayan people to tropical forest too. For these reasons, exists the absence of research over these kinds of pieces. They were extremely popular in the churches under the Franciscan order. Thus, this article aims to provide an analysis of five altarpieces sponsored by the friars during the colonial period. The intention is understanding what solutions used in the manufacture and the transmitted discourse through them. In addition, the preferred models and their stylistic evolution.