crown

crown

c. 1740
Artist
unknown artist
Country
Mexico
Style/Tradition
Mexican Colonial
Object
crown
Accession Number
1992.393
Credit Line
Gift of the Robert C. Appleman Family

Unknown artist, Crown, about 1740. Gilt silver; 8 × 7 in. Gift of the Robert Appleman family, 1992.393.

Dimensions
height: 8 in, 20.3200 cm; diameter: 7 in, 17.7800 cm
Department
Mayer Center, Latin American Art
Collection
Latin American Art

When Hernando Cortés and his small army arrived in Mexico in 1519, to their delight they found that gold and silver were abundant. Indigenous societies had a long tradition of metalworking techniques, including filigree, casting, and hammering. Silversmiths from Spain began to immigrate to the Americas shortly after the conquest and introduced European forms and styles. Through time the synthesis of Indigenous and European styles became integrated, culminating in the lush excesses of colonial Baroque and Rococo metalwork. This crown would have adorned the head of a statue of a saint or the Virgin Mary.
--Donna Pierce, 2015

Known Provenance
Gifted 30 June 1992 by Mr. and Mrs. Robert Appleman 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.
Exhibition History
  • “ReVision: Art in the Americas” — Denver Art Museum, 10/24/2021 – 7/17/2022
  • ReVision: Art in the Americas, Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis, MN, 7/1/23 - 9/17/23