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OUR COLLECTION — LATIN AMERICA — PERU  211. LARGE RETABLO NATIVITY

Picture
This Nativity is a retablo (diorama) scene. Retablos are shrinelike boxes with religious scenes inside, an art form unique to Peru. They have evolved from the portable altars which the Spanish conquistadores brought with them in the 16th century.
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The scene consists of 20 village figures on the upper level adoring baby Jesus with parents and two angels, while 20 musicians celebrate on the lower level. All figures wear traditional Peruvian dress. The figures are formed of a unique clay made from potatoes and plaster of Paris. (Potatoes are a great material for a Peruvian Nativity because the potato is native to the Andes region.) After the figures are formed and dried, they are hand-painted and permanently set in the diorama. The wood case with hinged doors is also hand-painted in brilliant colors. The retablo measures 14 inches tall (to peak) by 8 inches wide by 3 inches deep.
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