Life's hazards and their survival

"On 21 September in the year 1886 Francesco Garcia was coming back from the Mineral de San Jose de los Amoles riding his horse with another in hand. When he reached Hacienda del Esto of Santa Maria Penamiller the river was in full spate but he recklessly attempted to cross. He was seized by the force of the water which tumbled him over along with his horse. Seeing himself in danger of drowning he pleaded for the help of Holy Mary of Guadalupe to whom he dedicates this retablo for the extraordinary miracle of saving him."

This is just one random example of a Mexican ex voto ('from a vow') painting. They are expressions of gratitude to saints for prayers answered - promises made in return for help requested, then executed in graphic form and then placed in church as a visual tribute to the powers of the saints. Each one depicts and describes the calamity in question: escapes from disasters such as floods and shipwrecks, fires and falls, railway or mining catastrophes; or salvation from illness and accidents or childbirth, surgery or scorpion bite; or the recovery of lost animals or a stolen van, the return of a wandering husband or runaway son, the survival of an assault or abduction: every situation salvaged or livelihood narrowly preserved. All human life is there vividly depicted in careful and explicit detail through the simple artistry of untrained painters hired by grateful survivors.

This is just a single random example of the many Mexican miracle paintings, dating from the 18th to the 21st centuries, currently on display at the Wellcome Collection which bills itself as 'a destination for the incurably curious'. It's a brilliant museum packed with extraordinary and gruesome material about the history of medicine and health-related artifacts from past ages and all over the world. Both the permanent gallery and the exhibitions there are fascinating, like this one, and all completely free. To me this place is irresistible and I drop by whenever I'm in London. I recommend it to everyone.

This was just one part of a long day of London culture. I had hoped to cover more but simply don't have the time. The day is over and this has already become back blip. I hope to catch up with journal and comments over the next few days when I'm back home.