Attributed to Antonio Acero de la Cruz (Bogota, Colombia, 1590 - 1671) 'The Virgin Mary gives the rosary to Saint Dominic of Guzmán and Saint Catherine of Siena, in the presence of Pope Honorius III and another Dominican nun' Oil on canvas. Relined. 256 x 218,5 cm.    A work attributable to the Colombian artist Antonio Acero de la Cruz (Santa Fe de Bogotá, 1600–1667), one of the most distinguished painters of the Viceroyalty of New Granada, who was also an architect and poet. His style is characterised by its archaic nature, with hieratic and extremely stylised figures and faces, rigid anatomies almost like mannequins, and the depiction of saints as kneeling “donors” praying around the central figure—an approach reminiscent of the seventeenth century.   This monumental work has a classical composition of a theme much favoured by the Dominican order: the apparition of the Virgin Mary (according to tradition) to Saint Dominic in a vision or mystical encounter, in which she presents him with the rosary and entrusts him with preaching it in the year 1208 (or 1214). In this painting she also gives it to Saint Catherine of Siena, considered one of the great mystics of her time (the fourteenth century), known for her role as preacher and writer, as well as for her decisive contribution to the return of the papacy to Rome after the exile in Avignon. The Virgin’s mission to Saint Dominic was to reveal the rosary to him as a powerful weapon against the Albigensian heresy and as a means of spreading the Christian faith. The Virgin asked him to promote this prayer, composed of the meditation on the mysteries of the lives of Jesus and Mary, so that people could contemplate and love Christ, and so that he himself might receive the protection he needed for his mission. At that time, Saint Dominic was in southern France, attempting to convert the Albigensians, a religious group that professed a heretical doctrine. In those days, the rosary was known as the “Psalter of Mary” and was based on the monastic psalter of 150 psalms. The Virgin proposed the recitation of 150 Hail Marys as a more accessible and powerful prayer for the people. From heaven, the rosary is distributed by angels to the entire universal Church, represented by the Pope, and to all believers—including us, who contemplate the work and are silently drawn into it—so that we may use it as a tool of prayer that “grants protection and leads to victory,” as remembered in the Battle of Lepanto. The angels burst into the scene amid a sea of clouds filled with the golden light of Glory, accompanying Mary.   The vision or mystical encounter is poetically depicted through a shower of flowers that seem to have been cut from a period botanical compendium (tulips, roses, peonies, carnations, lilies, violets, etc.), symbolising the connection between the earthly and spiritual worlds, with the flowers serving as gifts or signs. The scene unfolds in a specific and visible setting seen through the painted window between the saints: a green countryside with trees and, in the distance, a convent or monastery—perhaps the one that commissioned and housed the work for devotion. These could have been the convents of Las Nieves, San Diego, or Las Aguas, for which Acero de la Cruz produced paintings, or the first chapel he founded as an architect, that of Monserrate, for which he also created portraits and other religious works.   Continuing with the description of the piece, a Pope blesses the vision, making his presence known. He is undoubtedly Honorius III, who played a fundamental role in the history of the Dominicans by confirming the Order of Preachers on 22 December 1216 with the bull “Religiosam vitam,” establishing the foundations for the friars’ mission to preach the word of God and combat heresies, which became the essential charism of the order founded by Saint Dominic. Finally, a nun, barely visible at the edge of the canvas, represents the female branch of the Order of Preachers, dedicated mainly to contemplative prayer and penance to support the friars’ preaching. Known as the Second Order, it was founded by Saint Dominic to provide spiritual support for the women who had been converted to the Catholic faith.   This lot has been imported, therefore its exportation permit from the Spanish Ministry of Culture is guaranteed and is exempt from spanish culture export duties.