In The Philippines
The Santero culture in the Philippines is widely prevalent among Filipino Catholics, having been influenced by colonial Spain and various forms of folk Catholicism. In the Philippines, the earliest record for a vested Santo image is the Santo Nino de Cebu, a baptismal gift given by Ferdinand Magellan in 1521.
During the Spanish era of the Philippines, only the noble and wealthy often could afford Santo images, due to their elaborate ornamentation and design. To this day, the cost of Santo image and its maintenance is commonly thought to be costly. The most expensive to the type of Santo are the ones made of Marfil or ivory, due to its present scarcity and government ban from 1981.
Read more about this topic: Santo (art)