Pair of Archangels (Gabriel and Raphael)

Towards the end of the 17th century, the custom of painting angels gained popularity in the Viceroyalty of Peru. Numerous artists took up commissions for churches, monasteries, and convents. Some extraordinary examples have survived to this date and are to be found in areas that were part of the colonial holdings such as modern-day Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina. Clearly the theme of painting angels was widespread throughout the region. Scholar Teresa Gisbert in her studies has mentioned the three types of angels that were depicted: angels in feminine attire, the Marian angels and the military angels. Images of angels as well as other images of saints were used to indoctrinate the Andean native populations and so, their promulgation spread during the early centuries of Spanish rule.

Each of these paintings represents an important angel--hierarchically speaking, that is, each is an archangel in the Heavenly army. Archangels are intermediaries between God and humanity. Depicted are Gabriel and Raphael with their respective attributes or iconography. Gabriel who is a messenger of God, indeed, brings the good news to Mary that she is to be the mother of God and the new Eve and thus mother of humanity and is depicted holding a lily signifying purity. Raphael is holding the staff of a traveler and a fish. In the Book of Tobias, part of the Old Testament, he accompanies Tobias, and during the journey tells him to catch a fish and then uses his gallbladder to cure his blindness.