Candelaria looks for old photos to rehabilitate the menceyes

These menceyes are the first to preside over the Plaza de la Patrona de Canarias, the Virgin of Candelariawhen this space was finished and the Basilica was inaugurated in 1959. But in August 1993 they were replaced by 9 bronze menceyes made by José Abad. The brutalism and ingenuousness of the first sculptures contrast with the heroic vision of the menceyes who replaced them in the square. The original Reyes Darias pieces were relocated to Los Menceyes Avenue. At that time it was already evident that the 34 years that they remained outdoors on the shore of Candelaria beach had had devastating effects on their structures. The salty wind, which blows strongly in this part of the South, and the humidity disfigured these works of art.

One of the keys may be in the materials with which the 10 menceyes were sculpted. Majorera Agustina Torino, conservator and restorer of the Tenerife company Cúrcuma, admits this: «Pending the results of the tastings and other studies that we have recently carried out on the sculptures, we believe that they were not exactly made with stone, but with a mixture of sand and some type of cement. Inside, there is also rusty iron. All of this has contributed to the degradation of the pieces.”

The Candelariero City Hall and the Cúrcuma company have already compiled twenty old photos of these representations of the Guanche leaders. However, they seek more images so that the restoration project is as precise as possible. For this, they ask for the collaboration of the residents of the municipality. Manuel González, Councilor for Historical Heritage, assures this: “All the previous study work that Cúrcuma is carrying out is vital for the definitive drafting of the project. We hope to receive more photos so that the sculptures look as similar as possible to the originals when the rehabilitation is finished.

Consistory and company have put a lot of effort into this project, aware of the great value that candlestick makers in particular and Tenerife residents in general give to these clay-colored sculptures. They are the ones that remember the first generations that flocked to venerate La Morenita in the Basilica. They are the same neighbors who have spent years missing the recovery of this sculptural ensemble, some of whose pieces have very important damage. One is missing part of the left side, others have their arms destroyed and the feet appear deformed in many of them.

Agustina Torino assures that the attempts to fix some of these flaws have been counterproductive. “We believe that the bases that were added and some patches were not made with the right materials. We are studying all of this so that, once we have a clear project, we can undertake the restoration », she details.

The mayor of Candelaria, Mari Brito (PSOE), assures that the objective of the City Council with this intervention is “to value this important cultural heritage of the municipality, which due to the material with which they are made, the passage of time and marine erosion and wind has been deteriorated ». In addition to the restoration, it is intended to incorporate interpretive signage “so that locals and visitors can learn about the history of the complex and what Guanche mencey each of those represented is,” Brito points out.

A very complex task

Given the complexity of the process, neither the mayor Manuel González nor the restorer Agustina Torino dare to speak of specific deadlines. The first objective is to have the project drafted by the end of this year or during 2023, and then undertake the repair of the 10 sculptural works. The conservator who works on the project assures that there are many conditioning factors that must be managed to achieve a rehabilitation that matches the importance of the sculptural ensemble. “For example, we have to choose materials for the works that not only respect the original piece, but also last over time and better resist erosion,” explains Agustina Torino.