Santa Cruz de Tlaxcala: a side altar

A while back we ran a series of posts on altarpieces in Tlaxcala, as well as a special feature on unique paintings in the celebrated church of Santa Cruz.

retablo of Santa Elena

In this post we look at another retablo in the church, one dedicated to a seldom referenced saint Santa Elena, or St. Helen, the mother of  the emperor Constantine the Great.

main altarpiece

Fashioned in the Solomonic baroque style, like the highly ornate main altarpiece of the church, resplendent with gilded spiral columns, the retablo showcases a statue of the saint in the center niche holding a cross, surrounded by paintings relating episodes in her legendary discovery of the true cross.

text © 2022 Richard D.Perry

color pictures by the author and Niccolo Brooker.

See our posts on other Tlaxcalan retablos: Tepeyanco; Zacatelco; Santa Cruz de Tlaxcala; Apetatitlan; San Jose