Infant Jesus of Mechelen facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Infant Jesus of Mechelen l'Enfant Jesus de Malines
Location	Louvre Museum Department of Sculptures
Date	c.1500s
Type	Walnut body Polychrome and Gilding Oak wood base

The Infant Jesus of Mechelen (in French, l'Enfant Jésus de Malines) is a simple wooden statue from the 1500s. It shows Jesus as a child holding a special ball with a cross on top, called a globus cruciger. He is also making a sign of blessing.

This statue is now kept at the Louvre Museum in Paris, France. It's a great example of the many statues made in the 1500s in Mechelen, a city in modern-day Belgium. These statues were sent all over the world where people practiced the Catholic faith.

Some collectors call this statue the "fraternal twin" of the Santo Niño de Cebú statue from the Philippines. This is because they look very similar in how they stand, their hand gestures, their faces, and their size. The Infant Jesus of Mechelen was bought by a private collector in 2009 and is now safely displayed at the Louvre Museum. You'll see it without any fancy clothes or jewelry, unlike some other Child Jesus statues.

The Story of Mechelen Statues

Around the 1400s, artists in Mechelen, a city in modern Belgium, started making small statues. These statues showed male and female saints, and especially the Child Jesus. They usually stood on a small base.

How They Were Made

Most of these statues were carved from a single piece of walnut wood. Workshops in Mechelen worked closely with artists in Brussels. This meant that customers could order a "Malines doll" (as they were sometimes called) with its special colorful paint from either city.

These "Malines dolls" were often part of larger church decorations. Sometimes they were placed in special altars or "Enclosed Gardens." These displays included not just statues, but also small treasures and handmade fabrics.

Who Used Them?

People used these statues for their private prayers at home. They were very popular in private chapels and beguinages (communities where religious women lived). Statues of the Infant Jesus were especially loved by convents, which are homes for nuns.

Because many of these statues were made, they were not too expensive. This made them popular items to sell to other countries, especially Spain and Portugal. By the early 1500s, you could find these "Malines dolls" almost everywhere in Europe.

What the Statue Looks Like

This statue shows Jesus when he was a baby. The colors and style of painting are typical of Mechelen, which was part of the Southern Netherlands in the early 1500s. The child's body is carved from a single piece of walnut wood.

Here are some interesting details about the statue:

• The cross that was probably on top of the Globus Cruciger (the ball Jesus holds) is now missing. A modern decoration has replaced it.
• The statue's right arm was cracked and broken, but it has been carefully fixed.
• The child's feet are attached to a red, six-sided base using two metal rods. This is similar to how some Jesus statues from Naples, Italy, are made.
• The front of the six-sided base is made of oak wood. It has pretty carvings of flowers and beads.
• Jesus's face looks playful and happy, with a slightly pinched mouth and pink cheeks.
• The statue follows a style of art called "Salvator Mundi" (which means "Savior of the World").
• His curly hair is covered in gold leaf, which is very thin gold. There's no sign that he ever had a wig.

The way the statue is made shows European colonial art styles. For example, the hair is gilded with gold leaf, while lead paint and oily potassium were used for the skin. This is similar to a sculpting style called "Encarnacion." Experts have looked closely at the statue. They believe it was carved in Mechelen, but probably painted in Brussels. Then, it was sent to areas that Spain had colonized.

Comparing It to the Santo Niño de Cebú

Both the Mechelen statue and the Santo Niño de Cebú are about the same height, around 30 centimeters (12 inches) tall. They also share many similar features. Both statues stand in a similar pose, make a blessing gesture with their hand, and hold golden globes.

If you look at pictures taken from the front, their faces seem almost exactly alike, with a few small differences:

• In photos, the Mechelen statue looks straight ahead. The Cebu statue seems to look down towards the person praying, but this can depend on the camera angle.
• The fingers of the Cebu statue lean to the left. The Mechelen statue's fingers point to the right. However, if the golden glove is removed from the Cebu statue, its original wooden fingers point upwards. It's possible the Cebu statue's original wooden arm was broken and not fixed perfectly, as there's a metal brace around it when its clothes are removed.
• The Mechelen statue's hair is carved all the way down to its neck. The Cebu statue's hair used to look like it only went to its earlobes. But in newer photos, the Cebu statue's hair is also carved all the way to the neck, just like the Mechelen statue.

How the Louvre Museum Got It

The exact history of who owned the statue before the Louvre Museum is not known to the public. The Louvre Endowment Fund bought the statue from a private collector in September 2009.

Before displaying it, experts studied its paint, examined the wood, and used X-rays. This helped them confirm its age and that it was a real colonial-style artwork. The statue is now kept in the Department of Sculptures at the Louvre Museum.

In 2012, some religious groups from Texas and New York asked the Louvre to buy the statue and give it to them. However, this request was not approved. A French art magazine called La Tribune de l'art featured the statue on June 16, 2010. It was shown as one of the Louvre Museum's new medieval art pieces.

See also

• Child Jesus
• Santo Niño de Cebú
• Infant Jesus of Prague
• List of Images with Canonical Coronation