Filipino artists make plans to restore Pancho Villa grave

National artist for sculpture Frederic Caedo (left) and portrait artist Rudy Aquino begin work on Pancho Villa’s grave in Manila. Photos courtesy of Rudy Aquino.

Pancho Villa was the biggest sports celebrity of his time, but the illustrious memory of that greatness is slowly getting eroded by the neglected state of the legendary Filipino boxer’s grave.

Filipino artists Rudy Aquino and Frederic Caedo took notice of Villa’s almost-forgotten resting place at Manila North Cemetery and will embark on restoring the damaged bust of the boxing hero.

“I decided to visit Villa’s graveyard after seeing its miserable state in social media,’’ said Aquino, a former personal portrait artist for boxing icon Manny Pacquiao.

A Philippine News Agency post tugged at Aquino’s heartstrings as it showed photos of the defaced final resting place of the first Filipino world boxing champion.

A wash basin, dirty kitchen utensils and an old helmet were just part of the pile of trash that collected around the gravesite, part of which is likewise occupied by informal settlers.

“I politely asked them (informal settlers) to remove their extension kitchen and other trash,’’ said Aquino, who was assisted by the occupants themselves in tidying up Villa’s burial ground.

Fame came to Villa, also known as Francisco Guilledo, after knocking out Jimmy Wilde of Wales in the seventh round of their flyweight bout in New York on June 18, 1923, as he became the first Filipino world boxing champ.

Death by tooth

“The Brown Bomber,” as Villa was popularly called in the United States, defended his title in Brooklyn in May 1924 and in Manila in May 1925.

Villa lost a bout in California on July 4, 1925 after he got tormented by an aching tooth. That turned out to be his last fight. The bum tooth led to infections causing his death 10 days later at the age of 23. He was enshrined in the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1994.

Villa’s name is still clearly etched below his bust with gloves on the left side and an angel figure behind it holding a belt declaring him as the world flyweight champion.

Requiring proper conservation and restoration, the bust has a broken jaw and a missing left ear and suffers from a bad paint job. Aquino will collaborate with Caedo, a national artist for sculpture, for the complete makeover.

“There are cleaning techniques to remove surface dirt, old paints, grime and stone corrosion to reveal the original surface,’’ said Aquino, who had done numerous portraits of Pacquiao, especially during the prime of the eight-division world champion.

“However, we can only do simple retouching,’’ he added.

Aquino intends to reach out to Villa’s family in the US and ask permission for the restoration. He also plans to seek authorization from the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, the National Historical Commission, the Manila City government and the North Cemetery management.

“We need to upgrade the bust to metal pouring or a mix of metal and granite,’’ said Aquino.