Baroque props and furnishings at the service of religious images in the Canary Islands: the Rosary chest and the pedestal of the Virgin of El Pino (18th century)

Abstract

The subject of interest in this work are two pieces that are unpublished, or at least unknown to Canarian historiography, from the parish or Basilica of Nuestra Señora del Pino, in the town of Teror (Gran Canaria). Both pieces of furniture formed part of the trousseau of the two Marian dedications, and are linked to a genuinely Baroque sculptural practice or typology, namely the clothed or overdressed image. Specifically, they are a box or chest, intended for the safekeeping of the goods of the brotherhood of the Virgen del Rosario, and a pedestal for overdressing the titular image of the church, both dating from the 18th century. The study of these items was made possible as a result of their fortuitous discovery on the occasion of the recent opening of the Basilica's museum of sacred art in 2021. The study ends with an overall assessment of both objects in relation to the rest of the island's pieces published in specialised publications on the archipelago.