This statue is of the Roman Catholic saints Cosmas and Damien, twin brothers who were martyred in the first century CE. In Haitian Vodou, gods known as the Marasa, or twins, are associated with these Catholic saints. The twins are child spirits and are always portrayed together. This statue of the Roman Catholic saints is used in Haitian Vodou rituals as the embodiment of the Marasa. In Vodou the twins are normally associated with the color white. In this statue they are wearing purple and red.

Catalogued by Annabelle Yang:

Cosmas and Damian were in life were famed both for their proselytization of the Christian faith and for their skill as physicians. Furthermore, in their generosity, they never accepted payment for their medical services. Cosmas and Damian are often depicted holding various boxes and flasks referencing their profession, as can be seen in the water-containing flasks they carry in this statue. The haloes around their heads further mark them as saints. The saints are clothed in red, the color of blood and martyrs, and purple, a royal color and the color of the robe thrown upon Jesus when he was mocked prior to his crucifixion.

Saints Cosmas and Damian are perhaps most famed for the so-called “miracle of the black leg,” in which a devout Deacon was afflicted with a gangrenous leg. The saints appeared to him in a dream and amputated the leg, and went on to replace the leg with one from a recently buried Moor or Ethiopian. Thus, the transplanted leg could be identified by its dark skin color.

In Haitian Vodou, Saint Cosmas and Saint Damian are identified with the Marasa, a twin pair of child lwa. Rather than red and purple, the Marasa dress in white. They are powerful spirits, who can frequently be found at crossroads, those transitional realms between life and death. In ceremonies invoking the lwa, it is the Marasa, together with another guardian of the crossroads, Papa Legba, who must first be evoked. Manmi Maude of the Sosyete Nago house explains that the Marasa are “in everything. They facilitate communication among the spirits and bring messages to humans on earth.” This is a crucial role, as illness can arise when the lwa are upset with someone. Manmi Maude adds that the Marasa “do healing —if your project gets stuck, you make an iliminasyon [ceremony] for them.” In this way, they mediate between supplicant and lwa (personal communication between Manmi Maude and Prof. Matory, 16 November 2020, email from Prof. Matory to Annabelle Yang).

Prof. Matory wrote to Annabelle Yang on 11 November 2020 based on his conversation that day with Manmi Maude:

                “*Manmi Maude says that she had never heard that story. The Marassa do not seem to be associated specifically with healing, but “they are in everything. They facilitate communication among the spirits and bring messages to humans on earth.” They are “advocates” in the sense that “they hear and tell you why things aren’t going right.” In response to my specific question about whether they conduct healing: “They do healing—if your project gets stuck, you make an iliminasyon for them” and they then communicate with the other spirits to ask what the problem is. They the inform the supplicant about the problem and how to fix it. All of this is based upon my telephone interview with her today.”

The Marasa are also very hungry lwa, who require sufficient feeding – this stems from a belief that twins, born with lower weights, require more food and medicinal care. Indeed, perhaps the feeding itself is medicinal – proper food in Haitian culture is intimately tied to health. Images of the Marasa, often in the Catholic manner of Cosmas and Damian, appear in many a Vodou sanctuary, holding palm fronds representative of healing medicinal herbs – as can be seen in the right hands of the duo in this statue (personal communication between Manmi Maude and Prof. Matory, 16 November 2020, email from Prof. Matory to Annabelle Yang)..