Granada School of Pablo de Rojas (Alcalá La Real 1549-1611 Granada) - Bust of Saint John the Baptist Natural

Granada School of Pablo de Rojas (Alcalá La Real 1549-1611 Granada) - Bust of Saint John the Baptist Natural
In carved and polychrome wood. 16th to early 17th centuries. In polychrome wood, good condition, measurements: 63 X 45 X 37 cm. Pablo de Rojas (Alcalá La Real 1549-1611 Granada) and his work includes the practice of incorporating relics into images. It was in the wake of the Council of Trent, and from the year 1563, that the cult of saints and the veneration of their relics became actively promulgated by the Church as a doctrinal objective, which in effect was intended to act as a weapon against the Protestant influences that swept Europe. The present work is a good example of the characteristic rigid posture of the Romanesque style typical of the works of Pablo de Rojas. Carved like a bust, the saint is dressed in liturgical vestments and with his arms hidden under a dalmatic. The face of Saint John shows us a deep gesture of serenity and a look full of sweetness and peace, heading towards the horizon. Reference bibliography: MARTÍN ROSALES, Francisco, ROSALES MARTÍNEZ, Francisco, Pablo de Rojas (1549-1613), sculptor of imagery, teacher of Juan Martínez Montañés, Alcalá la Real, City Hall, 2000.; CRUZ CABRERA, José Policarpo, “Baroque sculpture from Granada. The artistic profession at the service of spirituality”, in HENARES CUÉLLAR, Ignacio; LÓPEZ GUZMÁN, Rafael (coords.), Antiquity and excellences. Catalog of the exhibition held in Seville in October-December 2007, Junta de Andalucía, 2007, pp, 118-132.