New Contributions Regarding the <i>Barniz de Pasto</i> Collection at the Museo de América, Madrid

Abstract

This article describes the objects in the barniz de Pasto collection at the Museo de América, Madrid. The barniz de Pasto technique will be described, as well as the historical documentary sources that have previously discussed this varnish. The article will also mention the historical reasons why Spain is the European country in which the greatest number of objects decorated with varnish have been found, in both religious and private collections. The main body of the article discusses all the barniz de Pasto objects held in the Museum collection, focuses on the history of their arrival at the Museum, and investigates their possible origin, with the help of ample photographs. The final section examines the Museum’s three most recent acquisitions, completed in the second half of 2022, in detail.

Keywords

• Museo de América
• <i>mopa-mopa</i>
• art from Quito
• art from Colombia
• José María Gutiérrez de Alba
• <i>barniz de Pasto</i>