THE WAY TO THE CALVARY ALTARPIECE

SUPPORT AND ELABORATION 

The altarpiece main frame is made of oak and has painted wings and ceramic traceries assembled using wooden dowels. The capitals and feet of the columns are both made from white clay while the shafts and patterned openwork are made of wood. These are attached to the sides using nails.  

The main compartment of the altarpiece is occupied by different ceramic reliefs comprising one single or several figures or parts and decorative vegetable and plant elements that are also polychrome decorated. The reliefs are attached to the background by forged nails, wooden dowels and twine attached to their rears while vegetable and plant decorative motifs are nailed into position.

The reliefs were made using molds. More than 15 different molds have been counted, without including the corresponding hands and, in some cases, even faces which were manufactured independently and attached to the reliefs while the clay was still damp using a slip technique*. Wooden frames have small vegetable motif decoration in applied terracotta.

* Information taken from the Restoration Dossier compiled by the Centre for the Conservation and Restoration of the Cultural Property of Castile and León, 2001.