A hidden chamber in a shuttered section of San Quentin State Prison conceals its oldest mural, a 100-year-old depiction of Jesus of Nazareth and the twelve apostles at the Last Supper. The building housed San Quentin’s 28 female prisoners before its conversion to the prison hospital in 1933. It was shuttered in 1937. The 30-by-50-foot chamber was sealed off during retrofitting around 2007, and is now accessible only through a hatch in the roof. Over the decades, the mural deteriorated due to roof leaks and moisture, and it now sits lonely and forsaken in perpetual darkness and stagnant air. This photo was taken in 2013 by Public Information Officer Sam Robinson, who visited the mural with Tommy Winfrey (San Quentin News’ art editor at the time) to document the mural before it became forgotten by the years.
