PRESSED-TIN Crèche Scene from Mexico

In 2002 a friend and I went to Mexico. It was my first and only time there and I remember being enamored with the colorful and often hand-made items that were for sale, but I couldn't seem to find anything that cried out “buy me”.

When I came upon this little Crèche scene, I almost passed it by.

                                                      Sorry about the poor video.

The little figures, ranging in size from three quarters of an inch to two and a half inches, came packaged in a small tin box and, like most of the folk-art in Mexico it was crude & almost primitive in style. I could see that the pieces were cut by machine, but the painting is definitely done by hand. An additional piece of metal is soldered to the back of each figure to enable them to stand on their own, much like an easel.

The little box and its contents weighed practically nothing, so it was easy to bring home. When I think of all the work that went into making the box and the 10 little figures, I can’t believe that, even considering that I bought it 19 years ago, I paid the equivalent of less than $3.00 for it.