But baby Jesus figurines have such sentimental value in families that every January an area in downtown Mexico City is full of people with the broken religious sculptures looking for a workshop for hands, legs, nose, eyes, eyelashes or fingers.
Mexicans restore their baby Jesus figurines in time for Candlemas, on Feb. 2, the Catholic feast marking the end of Christmas celebrations that commemorates the Virgin Mary’s purification and Jesus’ presentation at the temple.
“It is cheaper to buy one, but it is not so much the one you buy, but the one someone has given you, (it’s) why you have it.
Nothing more,” said María Sánchez Arena, 61, who this time of the year helps restoring baby Jesus figurines.
It is common that from one year to the next, plaster figures lose a hand, a nose, a finger or even the entire head.
