Tuesday, March 12, 2013

142. IMMACULATE HEART OF JESUS & MARY



I took Friday off last week as I thought I needed a longer weekend to recover from the stress of writing, presenting, pre-producing and shooting a couple of commercials. I had not planned on going out on that day—until my Plaridel dealer texted me about some items in his shop “that may be of some interest to me”. I usually dismiss nebulous messages like this—in the past, a dealer had sounded me off about “great vintage paintings” he had, but when I rushed to check, they were just awful paper prints.

When I got there, the first items I saw and, which I eventually took home, was this unusual set of busts representing the Immaculate Heart of Mary and Jesus, in a classic 1950s urna.


The busts, all of 8 inches high, are made of high quality plaster and they have retained their brilliant colors through the years. They are screwed onto the base of the simple, but well-assembled urna.


There are charming home-made flower decorations inside the urna, fashioned from cloth and plastic flowers, with small bottles and caps servings as vases. The backboard of the urna has been pasted on with various estampitas of Agony in the Garden, Virgin of Lourdes and Our Lady of Perpetual Help.


A souvenir fold-out paper fan commemorating the blessing of the Redemptorist Shrine in Baclaran in 1952 (and where Our Lady of Perpetual Help is the center of devotion) is also attached to the backboard.


The excellent condition of the santos and the urna's contents attest to the care that the previous owners had for this private devotional piece and I am fortunate to have acquired it for such a reasonable price.

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