Unknown artist, Christ Teaching in the Temple, 1600s. Oil paint with shell inlay on wood panel; 11¼ × 14½ in. Gift of Robert J. Stroessner, 1991.1160.

height: 11.25 in, 28.5750 cm; width: 14.5 in, 36.8300 cm; frame height: 15 in, 38.1000 cm; frame width: 18.5 in, 46.9900 cm

Mayer Center, Latin American Art

Latin American Art

This object is currently on view

During the colonial period in Mexico, a unique art form known as enconchado was invented and may be related to both pre-conquest shell mosaic and Asian shell inlay traditions. Enconchado panels and objects were inset with pieces of mother-of-pearl and then painted with oil paints thinned to a translucence, to allow the shimmer of the pearl to shine through the paint. Various workshops in Mexico City and other areas produced these stunning and unusual works of art.
-- Donna Pierce, 2015

Bequest of Robert Stroessner 27 December 1991 to the Denver Art Museum. Provenance research is on-going at the Denver Art Museum. Please e-mail provenance@denverartmuseum.org, if you have questions, or if you have additional information to share with us.