MEXICO CITY.- After centuries of devotion and decades of visible wear, the 17th-century sculpture of Jesús Nazareno housed in the town of Cusihuiriachi, Chihuahua, has regained its presence and dignity following a careful conservation and restoration project driven by the local community.
The polychrome wooden figure, preserved in the Templo de Santa Rosa de Lima, holds deep historical, artistic, and spiritual meaning for residents of the municipality. Its recent restoration not only stabilized the fragile sculpture but also restored its visual coherence, ensuring its preservation for future generations.
The work was led by independent conservator Daniela Lira Pacheco, with authorization and oversight from the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH), through César Santiago de la Riva Molina, head of the institute’s movable heritage conservation area in Chihuahua. Additional collaboration came from conservators María Belén Medina Ramírez, Carmen del Rosario Robledo Tovar, and Enya Paola Alcántara Castorena, as well as museographer Raymundo Martínez Garrido.
Standing 1.72 meters tall, the sculpture had suffered significant structural damage over time. Extreme temperature fluctuations typical of the region caused the wood to expand and contract, resulting in deep cracks. Earlier water infiltration in the church compounded the damage, weakening the internal structure of the figure.
A detailed diagnostic revealed fractures and losses in the arms, forearms, part of one foot, and the middle finger of the right hand. The base of the sculpture had also become unbalanced, creating overall instability. Complicating matters further were past, non-professional repairs: screws, ropes, bandages, adhesives, and repainting had been added in attempts to keep the image intact, unintentionally causing more harm and obscuring its original appearance.
“The main goal was to stabilize the sculpture and recover its visual unity, without losing sight of its devotional role and the symbolic importance it holds for the community,” explained Lira Pacheco.
The restoration process began with the removal of non-original elements and adhesive residues. Cracks were reinforced using compatible wooden inserts and dowels, missing components were reconstructed, and the sculpture’s limbs were carefully reassembled. An auxiliary internal support system was added to redistribute weight more evenly and correct the imbalance at the base.
From an aesthetic perspective, conservators gently cleaned the existing polychromy and carried out chromatic reintegration in areas where paint had been lost, following the original color tones still preserved in protected joints and recesses.
Beyond technical conservation, the project included thorough documentation, photographic recording, community outreach, and preventive conservation planning. The initiative forms part of a broader effort to safeguard Cusihuiriachi’s cultural heritage—an effort in which community involvement has been essential.
The sculpture, an example of Baroque religious imagery, was treated on site between December 3 and 7, 2025. It will remain in the Templo de Santa Rosa de Lima under new preventive conservation guidelines, which include discontinuing its use in religious processions to ensure its long-term preservation.
Today, the restored Nazareno once again stands as a powerful witness to the town’s history, faith, and collective identity—renewed not only through expert conservation, but through the shared commitment of the community that has long revered it.
