Presentation of Jesus in the Temple
Studio Unknown After 1920 - Before 1950
68 1/2" x 23 1/4"
In Loving Memory of Josephine Ximenez Rawson Born October 12, 1835 - Died April 10, 1922
DESCRIPTION: In this detail of the narrative window, Mary is shown in an attitude of prayer. Over her blonde hair she wears a head covering. Her free-flowing garments are ornamented at the neck and sleeves; over these is a sapphire blue cloak. Her head is uplifted, her face serene, and the halo is ruby. On close inspection, the flesh tones and light colored garments have a slightly greenish tint.
THE STORY: Mary has come to the temple with Joseph and Jesus for purification. This was a requirement of Jewish women 40 days after the birth of a boy child: "Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord." (Luke 2:24)
MEMORIAL: Josephine, daughter of Joseph and Magdalena Ximenez, was born in Florida. Her father was a well-to-do mariner, whose wealth was derived from the lucrative shipping industry so predominant in Key West at the time.
Josephine was educated at Miss Edwards' school in New Haven, Connecticut. When she returned to Key West, she took an active part in the work of St. Paul's Church as a Sunday school teacher and assistant to the organist, Mary Ann Porter. When Mary Ann died in 1860, Josephine became St. Paul's second organist and served 25 years without compensation. Outside of church work, she taught in a school for girls.
In 1875 at the age of 39, Josephine married Edward B. Rawson, formerly of New York. As a cigar manufacturer, Rawson was engaged in a business which diversified the maritime economy and the culture of the island. With the start of the Cuban civil war in 1868, the tobacco industry gradually moved to Key West, becoming a large and vital industry leading to prosperity for the entire population on the small island.
There were no children from the marriage of Josephine and Edward. He died in 1900; she in 1922 at the age of 86.
Source: The Golden Cockerel: The Art, Symbolism & History of the Stained Glass Windows, St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Key West, Florida by Winifred Shine Fryzel.
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