Pig in the Basilica of Colmenar Viejo (Madrid, Spain)
Pig
Pig (detail).
Sculpture in the external archivolt.
Basilica of the Ascension of Our Lady.
Colmenar Viejo, Madrid (Spain).
16th century.
Description
The north front portal of the basilica of the Ascension of Our Lady in Colmenar Viejo (Madrid), Spain, is decorated with a Pietà, with Christ on the Cross, and the coat of arms of the dukes of the Infantado, which allowed the portal to be dated around 1504. This model is typical of the Late Gothic Period. The archivolts are decorated with vegetable motives of thistle leaves between which children and a variety of animals (real and imagined) are arranged with great naturalism. This decoration is typical of the Toledo school and it has been related to Juan Guas's workshop, one of the most important masters who was employed in Toledo at the end of the 15th century.
The decoration of these archivolts complete the iconographic program of the temple which has a symbolic character: the children represent the innocence of the soul that has to surrender to the dangers of this world, for that they have to fight against the animals that are the symbol of evil.
In the external archivolt among the represented animals the pig can be found. The pig is the symbol of lust, gluttony, laziness, ignorance and egoism. It is represented between thistle leaves, with the snout smelling out the soil. It is represented together with a bear and a pilgrim to Santiago de Compostela. It is possible that in this context it alludes to the difficulties that the pilgrim has to overcome in his trip and, for extension, the man in walking the land.
Bibliography
- Laura Rodríguez Peinado, “Las portadas de la basílica de la Asunción de Nuestra Señora de Colmenar Viejo”, in Cuadernos de Estudios, Nº 23, (Asociación Cultural "El Pico San Pedro": Colmenar Viejo 2009), 230-248
Author
Laura Rodríguez Peinado.
