Christ 1880 - 1907

This wooden sculpture of Christ was created by José Benito Ortega, a New Mexican santero, sometime before 1941. The stark anatomical rendering, especially the exposed ribs and the stylized blood, compels us to contemplate suffering. But let us turn our gaze to the knees: the Passion flower motif blooms there. This symbol, with its origins in 17th-century interpretations of Christ’s suffering, finds echoes in the floriated cross, a medieval symbol where Christ’s cross sprouts leaves. The Passion flower, like the cross, is an index of suffering, yet its beauty hints at redemption. The flower’s presence here, on the knee, the very joint that allows us to rise, suggests a potent psychological link between suffering and hope. It is an echo, reminding us of the cyclical dance between despair and renewal, forever imprinted in our collective memory.