Bernardo del Rincón (1621-1660) Spanish, Valladolid, circa 1650-1660

María Angustias Lopez de La Camara Muller, Valladolid, since 1950;

and thence by descent

The present Christ Victorious is a quintessentially Spanish representation of Christ overcoming his own suffering. In the 17^th century, monumental representations of Christ in this dramatic manner filled the churches and were the centre of processions on the Iberian Peninsula, starting with the fabled image commissioned by the Blessed Francesco de Oviedo from Domingo de la Rioja for the convent of Serradilla in Cáceres around 1630. Before De La Rioja’s sculpture arrived in the convent, where it remains today, King Felipe IV had it exhibited at the Alcazar palace in Seville (Hernández Perera, op.cit., pp. 267-286). The King’s appreciation of the carving reinforced the popularity of the subject and soon copies appeared, including at the Venerable Third Order Franciscan Chapel in Madrid, and in the Church of San Jeronimo in Madrid. The latter shows Christ gesturing towards the wound in his side and placing his foot on the skull, much like the present statue.

Stylistically the carving can be placed in the sphere of influence of Gregorio Fernández, the father of the Castilian school. From Valladolid he disseminated a style characterised by a relatively schematic approach to anatomy, a sober mannerist style, and a naturalistic and lithe treatment of drapery. Fernández’ Christ at the Column in the church of La Vera-Cruz in Valladolid has a well-studied elongated body, engaging gaze into the distance, and shocking colouration of Christ’s flagellated skin, which compare to the present figure. However, the treatment of the hair, which falls thickly over the shoulder and back, leaner physique, and an expression that is more anguish than anger, is distinctly different from the Gregorio Fernández’ sculpture. These traits do compare remarkably well to a Christ of Forgiveness in the church of San Quirce in Valladolid found to be a documented work by Bernardo del Rincón by Fernández del Hoyo in 1983 (op.cit.,pp.  476-481). The long drapery folds that run from the top of the proper right hip to the lower left countered by smaller folds that point in the opposite direction are similar in both the present and Rincón’s Christ too. The kinship of the figures of Christ by Gregorio Fernández and Bernardo del Rincón is not surprising as Fernandez trained in the workshop of Rincón’s grandfather, Francisco. Manuel de Rincón, Bernardo’s father, in turn, trained with Fernández and Bernardo was therefore very much part of Fernández’ lineage. (Urrea, op.cit., p. 364)

One further statue by Rincón that relates closely to the present figure is his Christ of Forgiveness made for the Confraternity of the Passion in Valladolid. It was carried in the processions of the monks of this order for centuries before being moved into the church of San Quirce. Both the broad construction of the base and the scale of the present figure suggest it served the same purpose, and was possibly even part of the same ensemble.

RELATED LITERATURE
J. Hernandez Perera, “Domingo de la Rioja. El Cristo de Felipe IV en Serradilla”, Archivo español de arte 99, 1952, pp. 267-286; M.A. Fernández del Hoyo, “El Cristo del Perdón, obra de Bernardo del Rincón”, Boletin del seminario de estudios de arte y arqueologia 49, 1983, pp. 476-481; J. Urrea, “Escultores coetáneos y discipulos de G. Fernández, en Valladolid”, Boletin del seminario de estudios de arte y arqueologia 50, 1984, pp. 349-370

We are grateful to Alvaro Pascual Chenel for his assistance in cataloguing this work.