Visions of California

  Note: I've been working on a number of projects that will be coming out in the coming months. I'll be posting on this blog more frequently with updates. Mission San Juan Capistrano - Dating the Artifacts #3 Jennifer Ring, the archivist at Mission San Juan Capistrano, contacted me about whether or not I could find any information relating to a painting in the mission’s collection. The painting's subject is Our Lady of Sorrows and Jennifer reported that it “measures 25 inches high and just a hair passed 16.5 inches wide.” The painting is currently being restored and will hopefully be displayed in the not-too-distant future. It’s truly special that the mission has an archivist looking after the mission’s precious artifacts. I’ve heard many stories about mission valuables that were thrown away, or given away, stolen, or simply disappeared (examples include Mission San Diego’s stolen bells and Mission San Luis Rey’s missing baptismal, marital, and burial registers). It is a ...

  Mission San Juan Capistrano - Dating the Artifacts #2 Dating Extant Artifacts at Mission San Juan Capistrano, California In the summer of 2024 I was graciously asked by Mechelle Lawrence Adams (Executive Director) and Jennifer Ring (Mission Archivist) to give four talks at Mission San Juan Capistrano. The first of these talks discussed the story of how the mission was supplied during the Spanish colonial era (1769-c. 1821). This talk was prompted by the exciting discovery of Mission San Juan Capistrano's account books in Mexico City by my friend Dr. Marie Duggan, an economist who teaches at Keene State College in New Hampshire. Not only has Dr. Duggan provided me scans of the account books, she's also graciously assisted me in understanding how they were organized, how the province of Alta California was supplied, and the translation and interpretation of what was ordered and sent to the mission. Additionally, a small group of top-notch historians such as Dr. Damian Bacich ...