Ribeiro’s Crucifixion, with its Black Christ figure, recalls the wooden icons and religious adornments he saw in the churches among the hillsides of Goa, where his family had their ancestral home. His Catholic upbringing and education, particularly the harsh regime he endured at St Mary’s, had a lasting impression on him. In one undated extract from his diary, he wrote: ‘From too early an age I was troubled by “Father why hast thou forsaken me?”. Never could figure it out. The answers from others confused me even more … It was obvious that “God” or “Gods” told the others, but for a fact he never did tell me’ (cited Restless Ribeiro, 2013, p. 29).