La Santa Rosa de Lima
by Stephen Stookey
Title
La Santa Rosa de Lima
Artist
Stephen Stookey
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
This old, hand-painted sign welcomes visitors to La Santa Rosa de Lima.
Spanish settlers migrated to the Rio Chama valley in the 1730s. Approximately 20 families established Plaza de Santa Rosa de Lima in the early-1740s--about a mile from modern-day Abiquiu, New Mexico. The plaza's adobe church, named for the settlement's namesake saint, was constructed circa 1744. Repeated raids by Utes and Comanches caused the residents to abandon the settlement in 1747. Three years later the Spanish established a new settlement at present-day Abiquiu. The church in Santa Rosa de Lima remained in use into the 1930s. Time has slowly eroded the church. Today, crumbling adobe walls are all that remains of the historic church. Impromptu shrines are scattered about the site, evidence of continued spiritual devotion at the sacred site. I love the composition of the recent white cross set against the backdrop of the mission walls and New Mexico sky.
Key Words:
Abiquiu, Abiquiu New Mexico, Plaza de Santa Rosa de Lima, Santa Rosa de Lima, New Mexico, historic New Mexico churches, adobe church, adobe walls, cross, religion, christianity, Spanish mission, black and white photography, landscape, churches, Rio Chama
Uploaded
December 21st, 2021
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