Abstract
Since the early twentieth century, it has been accepted that the
enconchados bear a relationship with Asiatic or Mesoamerican objects. The
shell-inlayed frames, a very significant portion of the existing works,
show that the relation was, concretely, with Japanese namban lacquer-work.
That paintings with shell inlay took over the ornamentation from the
Japanese works applying it in line with Novohispanic pictorial conceptions,
is borne out by technical findings that establish the closeness of the
enconchados to paintings that omit the use of mother-of-pearl. The
production is known mainly from the works of a superior class that have
been conserved, but documental information proves that such works were
available to broad social groups. This article discusses these matters and
clarifies that the hybridization of forms responds to artistic conceptions
exclusive to New Spain.
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