Mary’s radiance on a Colonial altar
Like a light guiding us along the right path – that of redemption – and rekindling our faith in God, so does the Virgin of Candelaria shine out from the main altarpiece of the church in Merida that bears her name.
This holy antique, constructed between 1690 and 1700, illuminates the small church on 67th Street and 64th. It is Solomonic Baroque in style, made of red cedar wood, and according to Dr. Fernando Garcés Fierros, it is the only original Vice-regal altarpiece surviving in the state capital.
Dr. Garcés recounts an oral tradition that during the Mexican Revolution, when General Salvador Alvarado arrived in Yucatan (1915), and the parish priest saw that the soldiers were destroying decorations and artistic treasures in Merida’s churches, he decided to have the reredos painted white.
When the revolutionary rabble wanted to smash and burn the high altar, the priest managed to convince them that it was built of masonry, and there was no point in burning it. The priest´s guile saved the priceless altarpiece.
The truth of this story was confirmed in 1994 during a first restoration effort on this Colonial jewel under the auspices of the “Adopt an Artwork” program; and then again 15 years later.
On both occasions the work was directed by Dr. Garcés Fierros, and both times, on removing some six layers of paint from on top of the original 24-karat gold leaf finish gilding the reredos, it was discovered that, in fact, the first of these layers to have been applied to the altarpiece was a thick coat of white oil enamel.
The reredos measures seven meters high by seven meters wide (23 ft x 23 ft). It comprises three levels, and is divided into three vertical sections. The predella or base is of wood with two panels to the sides containing circular designs resembling rosettes, and decoration in the form of volutes and spirals, like snail shells.
The first level has semi-circular niches on both sides, adorned with medallions and acanthus leaves, flanked on either side by Solomonic columns with Corinthian capitels. This level contains sculptures of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Candelaria in the center, and St. Joseph.
On the second level are statues of the Archangel Raphael, St Teresa of Avila and St Anthony of Padua. Finally, in the single niche at the top level there is a figure of St. Rita of Cascia.
The church of Our Lady of Candelaria, whose feast is celebrated on the 2nd of February, also used to have four lateral altarpieces. The two on the north side were dedicated to St. Joseph with the Christ Child, and the Christ of Charity; while on the south there was one with an image of St. Gertrude, and another built in 1897, in a neo-Gothic style, when the church acquired a new statue of The Virgin Mary Help of Christians.
Moreover, as a result of the social disturbances in the early 20th century, some original figures were lost from the main altarpiece: St. Joachim, a crucifix about half a yard, or 40 cm in height, St Anne, St. Ildefonso, St. Matthew and St. John the Baptist. Only the patroness remains.
The high altar in the church of the Virgin of Candelaria in the center of Merida is another example of the high quality of Yucatecan vice-regal art, and can be admired during church opening hours.
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