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- Title
Un tabernacle inédit de Jacques Leblond de Latour.
- Authors
PAYER, CLAUDE; LAVALLÉE, GÉRARD
- Abstract
In a Roman Catholic church, or chapel, the tabernacle is a structure designed to house consecrated hosts and occupies the focal spot in the building. The tabernacle that was offered to the Musée d'art de Saint-Laurent in 1984 is of exceptional importance. It is of the highest quality and can be classed among the oldest extant works produced in New France. Its technical aspects make it stand out among those found in museum collections in Quebec. Between 1999 and 2006, the tabernacle underwent major conservation which, among other things, uncovered its original gilding. Initially of unknown origin, the combined efforts of conservators and historians revealed its hidden secrets. They were able to characterize the inventiveness of its design and to postulate on the context of its creation, its transformations, and past use. At the outset it was easy to demonstrate that this tabernacle had been made in New France. The quality of the craftsmanship and decorative motifs such as the column capitals, shells, vine branches, garlands, etc., resemble other well-known tabernacles: that of the parish of L'Ange- Gardien, now in the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, and the Jesuit tabernacle from Quebec City now at the Musée de la civilisation. An attribution to the French sculptor, Jacques Leblond de Latour (1671-1715), who established himself in Quebec in 1690, was proposed. The presence of the Jesuit siglum (ihs surmounting a heart) in the monstrance that decorates the central door suggests it was commissioned by the Society of Jesus. We propose that this work of exceptional quality was made for the Jesuit chapel in Montreal, inaugurated in 1694; this would make it the oldest extant liturgical furnishing from Montreal. It was probably sold to the parish of Sainte-Geneviève in 1760, and from the mid-nineteenth century until 1886 it served as part of the main altar in the chapel of Notre-Dame-de-Bonsecours in Montreal. After this date, it was subjected to a substantial transformation for relocation to a smaller chapel, which not only reduced its width, but removed its lower (Eucharistie) reserve and decorative crowning elements, and saw the original gilding overpainted. Evidence of these transformations came to light during the course of conservation treatment, confirming that this tabernacle was once much larger. It also possessed a unique design feature: the second reserve, which housed the monstrance, was located at the rear of a niche at the level of the colonnade. Although some aspects of its original decoration and design remain conjectural, one thing is certain: this work testifies to both the originality and the excellence of sculpture in New France.
- Subjects
CANADA; TABERNACLES (Church furniture); LEBLOND de Latour, Jacques; CANADIAN wood sculpture; JESUIT art &; symbolism; CHURCH decoration &; ornament; NEW France
- Publication
Journal of Canadian Art History / Annales d'Histoire de l'Art Canadien, 2013, Vol 34, Issue 1, p126
- ISSN
0315-4297
- Publication type
Article