Our Lady of Mount Carmel

18th century?
Oil on canvas
Mission Santa Barbara, California

As usual, Our Lady of Mount Carmel is here portrayed wearing a brown Carmelite habit and golden crown and carrying the crowned Christ Child in her arms.

The angels in the lower half of the painting are handing scapulars to the souls in Purgatory. Tradition in the Carmelite order has it that the Virgin gave the brown scapular to St. Simon Stock and that she will rescue those who wear it from Purgatory.

At the mission the label for this painting identifies the figures holding the Virgin's cloak as St. Joseph (note the lily stalk) and St. Teresa of Avila (in the habit of a Carmelite nun). St. Joseph was the patron saint of the first convent established by St. Teresa as part of her reform of the Carmelite order.

Read more about images of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
Read more about images of St. Joseph
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Read more about images involving Purgatory.

Photographed at the mission by Richard Stracke, shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.