In an earlier series of posts we detailed the varied frescoes found in the monastery of Acolman and its precincts. We add to these another post on an obscure, fragmentary mural in the lower rear cloister.
Although the message of this mural is unclear, several details are suggestive. We propose that the entire mural may have been a Thebaida, or portrayal of the Eremitical life— a theme illustrated in many Augustinian monasteries in Mexico, notably at Actopan and Zacualpan.
All that survives is the upper section of this fresco which illustrates a rocky landscape, with figures, buildings, trees, birds and other creatures along with other details of interest: A friar kneels in a cave on the extreme right.
On the left, a figure points to a serpent on a nearby crag, as an eagle hovers above. This is thought to refer to Honoratus of Arles an early Christian hermit, monk and later French bishop.*
On the right a praying figure swathed in red clothing (or hair?) is lifted Heavenwards by four angels—possibly a reference to St Mary Magdalene, who is also seen in the Crucifixion mural of the cloister.*
text © 2019 Richard D. Perry
images courtesy of Charles Lovell with appreciation
* Interpretations based in part on the study, Hortus eremitarum. Las pinturas de Tebaidas en los claustros agustinos by Antonio Rubial
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