ALTARPIECE OF THE INFANCY OF CHRIST

HISTORY 

We do not know how this altarpiece got to the church of Santibáñez-Zarzaguda. It most probably came from the city of Burgos which, at the end of the Middle Ages, was an important commercial and trade centre. Neither do we know exactly who acquired the altarpiece. Huidobro suggested that the initiative possibly came from one of the many merchants who had taken up residence in the city, although he didn't state any one name in particular. 

Judging from the testimony of Huidobro himself, what does seem clear is that the altarpiece's original location was not the parish church of St. Nicholas, neither did the altarpiece always figure as being part of the church furnishings. According to Huidobro, the altarpiece was originally acquired for the hermitage of La Virgen de las Eras, from where it was later moved to the parish church towards the end of the XIX century. This somewhat austere temple with its classicist belfry still stands at the heart of the town, not far from the parish church.