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painting of a man in a monk ' s robes holding a crossan old painting of a man in a monk ' s robespainting of a man holding a gold vase with a lion head on itpainting of a man in a monk ' s robes holding a crucifixpainting of a monk holding a rosary and a rosary in his handsan old painting of a man in a white robe holding a sworda painting of a woman with a veil on her headan old picture frame with a picture of a man on it
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108 - Colonial School. Mexico. 19th century.

Estimate €3,500 - €5,000
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Description
Colonial School. Mexico. 19th century. 'Portrait of Manuel Soria y Braña, Bishop of Querétaro and confessor of Emperor Maximilian' Oil on canvas. 91 x 58.5cm. Father Manuel Soria y Braña, born in the capital of Querétaro, was Bishop and Governor of the Diocese of Querétaro and confessor of the Emperor Maximilian of Habsburg, as well as a notable and recognized lawyer of the Superior Court of Justice of Querétaro. He had also been an oratorian monk at the Oratory of San Felipe Neri, Querétaro. As the chronicler of Querétaro and Doctor of Law Andrés Garrido del Toral informs us, in his two articles referring to the character, Father Soria 'was in charge of providing shelter and all kinds of assistance to the victims of the War of Intervention of the Second Mexican Empire and especially when the war was centered in this city of Santiago from March 6 to May 15, 1867, in an unbearable siege of 71 days.” As the spiritual assistant of the captive Maximilian in the last moments of his life, he visited him morning and evening from their first intimate meeting, on June 15, 1867, until the morning of June 19 of the same year, when the archduke was finally executed. , together with his generals Miguel Miramón and Tomás Mejía. Agustín Rivera, in the book “La Reforma y el Segundo Imperio” (The Reform and the Second Empire) by Ortega y Compañía, Editores (1904), collects the testimony of Father Soria during the hours of Maximilian's captivity. Thanks to this testimony, we can learn that the Bishop helped the Archduke write a letter that he addressed to the Pope asking for forgiveness for the faults he committed as a Catholic prince. It also highlights the only time the Father saw the Archduke cry when he received the news of the death of his wife Charlotte of Belgium. The news was not true, as Mejía and Miramón had invented it to “make Maximiliano's death more bearable”, in the words of Soria himself, since he was very tormented by the idea of leaving her alone. Finally, there is an anecdote in which, going to the Cerro de las Campanas, Father Soria began to convulse and it was Maximilian himself who calmed him down, telling him that there was no need to be afraid: 'So the condemned man was helping his helper”, comments Soria in his confessions. Reference bibliography: - Garrido del Toral, A. (15th November 2020). “EL CONFESOR DE MAXIMILIANO PARTE I”. La Voz del Norte. Periódico cultural de Sinaloa. https://www.lavozdelnorte.com.mx/2020/11/15/el-confesor-de-maximiliano-parte-i/ - Garrido del Toral, A. (30th November 2020). “EL CONFESOR DE MAXIMILIANO SEGUNDA Y ÚLTIMA PARTE”. La Voz del Norte. Periódico cultural de Sinaloa. http://www.lavozdelnorte.com.mx/2020/11/30/el-confesor-de-maximiliano-segunda-y-ultima-parte/ - Lara Salazar, Ó. (17th June 2012). “Confidencias del padre Soria”. La Voz del Norte. Periódico cultural de Sinaloa. http://www.lavozdelnorte.com.mx/2012/06/17/confidencias-del-padre-soria/
About the sale Dialogues with the Past: Vestigia
Auction location
Auction time 07/02/2026 at 7:00 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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