Latin American Virgin Mary/Our Lady of Guadalupe Question

[Chabal]

I have seen images of the Virgin Mary or Our Lady of Guadalupe with a skull instead of a face. I was wondering is there a particular meaning to this image or can anyone enlighten me as to it's origins?

Many thanks

[Octavius]

Hmm, I don�t really know, but the skeleton in Mexican art is celebrated. Although the universal symbol of death may be shocking to many, in Mexico death is contemplated face to face with impatience, with contempt, with irony and with humour. Skulls feature a lot.

The Mexican artist uses the skull as a living symbol like the rain, trees, the colours and the birds and is able to give a physical place to a physical fact. He controls death by catching its image; thus making it into a lasting visible life. Because for the Mexican artist death is not the end; but part of the continuation of the cycle of life; just as the day follows the night, and the spring follows the winter, life follows death.

The use of Skulls and skeletons in art was well represented even by The Aztecs who excelled in stone sculptures and carvings. The worship of death involved worship of life, while the skull � symbol of death � was a promise to resurrection. The Aztecs carved skulls in monoliths of lava, and made masks of obsidian and jade. Furthermore, the skull motif was used in decoration. They were moulded on pots, traced on scrolls, woven into garments, and formalized into hieroglyphs.

So perhaps it is just a reoccurrence of an art genre, celebrated in that part of the world.

[Chabal]

thanks for your answer, it was very informative.
thankyou.