The Mulattos of Esmeraldas
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==Background== |
==Background== |
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The Maroons, or "mulatos", of [[:es:Esmeraldas_(Ecuador)|Esmereldas]], included several autonomous communities of escaped slaves with mixed African and Indigenous descent. Don Francisco de Arobe, the son of an African slave and a Nicaraguan woman, had escaped inland and founded one such community in Esmereldas. Like other Maroon colonies, his community would have been considered a threat to Spanish authority, as a safe haven for free slaves and an obstacle to expanding Spanish infrastructure. As a result, the Spanish crown repeatedly attempted to subdue them, and eventually de Arobe agreed to a treaty with King Philip III. |
The Maroons, or "mulatos", of [[:es:Esmeraldas_(Ecuador)|Esmereldas]], included several autonomous communities of escaped slaves with mixed African and Indigenous descent. Don [[Francisco de Arobe]], the son of an African slave and a Nicaraguan woman, had escaped inland and founded one such community in Esmereldas. Like other Maroon colonies, his community would have been considered a threat to Spanish authority, as a safe haven for free slaves and an obstacle to expanding Spanish infrastructure. As a result, the Spanish crown repeatedly attempted to subdue them, and eventually de Arobe agreed to a treaty with [[Philip III of Spain|King Philip III]]. |
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This painting commemorates the treaty between Esmereldas and the King of Spain, which kept Esmereldas autonomous but officially "pacified" the coast, meaning that they accepted Spanish rule and converted to Christianity.{{Cite book |last=Frassani|first=Alexia|title=Visual Culture and Indigenous Agency in the Early Americas|date=October 11, 2021|publisher=Brill|isbn=9789004468108|pages=156-158}} In exchange, de Arobe was granted a governorship over Esmereldas. When he traveled to Quito with his sons to acknowledge the new treaty, this painting was commissioned by the judge at Quito, Juan del Barrio de Sepúlveda, for King Philip III. |
This painting commemorates the treaty between Esmereldas and the King of Spain, which kept Esmereldas autonomous but officially "pacified" the coast, meaning that they accepted Spanish rule and converted to [[Christianity]].{{Cite book |last=Frassani|first=Alexia|title=Visual Culture and Indigenous Agency in the Early Americas|date=October 11, 2021|publisher=Brill|isbn=9789004468108|pages=156-158}} In exchange, de Arobe was granted a governorship over Esmereldas. When he traveled to [[Quito]] with his sons to acknowledge the new treaty, this painting was commissioned by the judge at Quito, Juan del Barrio de Sepúlveda, for King Philip III. |
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Due to this history, the painting functions as a symbol of loyalty towards the Spanish crown, demonstrating the 'civilizing' of these mulatto men. In the letter to King Philip III that accompanied the painting, del Barrio de Sepúlveda calls Don Arobe and his sons "barbarians." He also refers to these subjects as, translated from Spanish, "very extraordinary things". ''Cosa extraordinaria'' was a phrase typically used for objects, |
Due to this history, the painting functions as a symbol of loyalty towards the Spanish crown, demonstrating the 'civilizing' of these mulatto men. In the letter to King Philip III that accompanied the painting, del Barrio de Sepúlveda calls Don Arobe and his sons "barbarians." He also refers to these subjects as, translated from Spanish, "very extraordinary things". ''Cosa extraordinaria'' was a phrase typically used for objects, brought from the Americas and kept in royal collections as exotic curiosities. Mulattos formed a new, unstable category, both racially and politically, making this painting a unique early depiction of their lives. |
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It is considered that the painting uses Western pictorial language to convey to the King of Spain the submission of a part of the Maroon population to the Crown. The hats held in the hands of two of the subjects signal submission and respect, since they are not placed on the head, and at the same time, as their insides are turned towards the viewer, they indicate no concealment of intentions. |
It is considered that the painting uses Western pictorial language to convey to the King of Spain the submission of a part of the Maroon population to the Crown. The hats held in the hands of two of the subjects signal submission and respect, since they are not placed on the head, and at the same time, as their insides are turned towards the viewer, they indicate no concealment of intentions. |
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Unusually for this colonial period, Gallque signed his own painting with the inscription "ADR SHS GALQ nl. de qto f," an abbreviation for "Andrés Sánchez Gallque, native of Quito, made this." The majority of works from mestizo painters are anonymous, and as far as we know Gallque never signed any other of his paintings. Apparently, the fact that it was a commission for the king of Spain was a unique opportunity to assert himself. |
Unusually for this colonial period, Gallque signed his own painting with the inscription "ADR SHS GALQ nl. de qto f," an abbreviation for "Andrés Sánchez Gallque, native of Quito, made this." The majority of works from [[mestizo]] painters are anonymous, and as far as we know Gallque never signed any other of his paintings. Apparently, the fact that it was a commission for the king of Spain was a unique opportunity to assert himself. |
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==References== |
==References== |
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