Virgen del Pilar; Spain, second half of the 20th century.

Virgin of Pilar; Spain, second half of the twentieth century.
Silver and agate.
Presents punches.
Preserves fanal.
Measurements: 41 x 21,5 x 21,5 cm.
The iconography of the Virgin of the Pilar, patron saint of the Hispanic world, has its origin in the tradition that narrates the apparition of Mary in Zaragoza on a column. This story is based on 13th century documents preserved in the cathedral of Saragossa, in which it is said that in the year 40 the Virgin appeared to Santiago el Mayor in that city, "in mortal flesh", before her Assumption. As a testimony of her visit she would have left a column of jasper popularly known as "the Pillar". The carving that gave rise to the iconography of the Virgin of the Pilar is a work of late Gothic French-Burgundian style from around 1435, attributed to Juan de la Huerta.