Floor plan

Time and placeSpain

Spain

A light-skinned man wearing a voluminous, ocean-blue, hooded robe sits at a cloth-draped writing table and looks up, fingers splayed over an open book and a pen held in his other hand, in this vertical painting. The man and desk take up most of the composition, which has an arched top. The man’s shoulders and body are angled to our right, and he looks off in that direction in profile. His balding head is rimmed with white hair curving over the large ear we can see, and he has a trimmed white and gray beard and mustache. His prominent nose is pointed, and his lips are closed. Light glints off the robe he wears so it shimmers in shades of topaz, aquamarine, and midnight blue. Voluminous white sleeves emerge under the mantle and are edged with narrow lace cuffs. His left hand, to our right, rests on an open book, which is propped against one or two other tomes. Near the edge of the table, two quills stand in the corners of a lidded inkwell, and a round, silver blotter, shaped like an upside-down chalice, and a lidded silver box sit nearby. The man’s chair has a tall post next to his shoulder to our left with a teardrop-shaped, gold finial. A second post, near his wrist, is lower and topped with a gold orb. The chair is draped in the same deep, raspberry-pink of the square table at which he sits. The tablecloth is edged with a wide band of gold along the bottom, and filigree-like gold decorations line the seams or folds at the corners. Brushstrokes are visible in many areas, especially in the colorfully charged blue and pink fabric. Beyond the man, to our right, a statuette of a person wearing a long, white robe over a white dress holds a baby. The clothing is edged with gold, and she wears a sphere-like gold crown. The baby also wears white and holds up one hand. The statuette stands on a platform supported by S-shaped corbels, and could have a projecting, squared awning over the top. This area is more loosely painted so some details are difficult to make out. In the background to our left, a wooden door stands open next to a dark space just behind the man’s head, so his profile is picked out against the shadow. The floor beneath is earth brown.
Condesa de Altamira and Her Daughter, María Agustina, by Francisco Goya, 1787–88
A work made of oil on panel.
God save us from such a bitter fate; a bandit threatening a woman and a child with a knife, page 41 from the "Black Border Album" (E), by Francisco Goya, ca. 1816–20
View of Toledo, by El Greco, ca. 1599–1600
A work made of oil on canvas.
Portrait of the Jester Calabazas, by Diego Velázquez, c. 1631–32

The works in this room are listed below.

Works in this room

Works made in Spain, from every century in the collection.

Section 1, north wall

  1. A light-skinned man wearing a voluminous, ocean-blue, hooded robe sits at a cloth-draped writing table and looks up, fingers splayed over an open book and a pen held in his other hand, in this vertical painting. The man and desk take up most of the composition, which has an arched top. The man’s shoulders and body are angled to our right, and he looks off in that direction in profile. His balding head is rimmed with white hair curving over the large ear we can see, and he has a trimmed white and gray beard and mustache. His prominent nose is pointed, and his lips are closed. Light glints off the robe he wears so it shimmers in shades of topaz, aquamarine, and midnight blue. Voluminous white sleeves emerge under the mantle and are edged with narrow lace cuffs. His left hand, to our right, rests on an open book, which is propped against one or two other tomes. Near the edge of the table, two quills stand in the corners of a lidded inkwell, and a round, silver blotter, shaped like an upside-down chalice, and a lidded silver box sit nearby. The man’s chair has a tall post next to his shoulder to our left with a teardrop-shaped, gold finial. A second post, near his wrist, is lower and topped with a gold orb. The chair is draped in the same deep, raspberry-pink of the square table at which he sits. The tablecloth is edged with a wide band of gold along the bottom, and filigree-like gold decorations line the seams or folds at the corners. Brushstrokes are visible in many areas, especially in the colorfully charged blue and pink fabric. Beyond the man, to our right, a statuette of a person wearing a long, white robe over a white dress holds a baby. The clothing is edged with gold, and she wears a sphere-like gold crown. The baby also wears white and holds up one hand. The statuette stands on a platform supported by S-shaped corbels, and could have a projecting, squared awning over the top. This area is more loosely painted so some details are difficult to make out. In the background to our left, a wooden door stands open next to a dark space just behind the man’s head, so his profile is picked out against the shadow. The floor beneath is earth brown.
    Saint IldefonsoEl Greco, c. 1603/1614Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. Condesa de Altamira and Her Daughter, María Agustina, by Francisco Goya, 1787–88
    Condesa de Altamira and Her Daughter, María AgustinaFrancisco Goya, 1787–88Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. A work made of oil on panel.
    CrucifixionMaría Josefa Sánchez, 1646Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  4. God save us from such a bitter fate; a bandit threatening a woman and a child with a knife, page 41 from the "Black Border Album" (E), by Francisco Goya, ca. 1816–20
    God save us from such a bitter fate; a bandit threatening a woman and a child with a knife, page 41 from the "Black Border Album" (E)Francisco Goya, ca. 1816–20Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Section 1, south wall

  1. View of Toledo, by El Greco, ca. 1599–1600
    View of ToledoEl Greco, ca. 1599–1600Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. A work made of oil on canvas.
    JobSpanish, c. 1618–c. 1630Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. Portrait of the Jester Calabazas, by Diego Velázquez, c. 1631–32
    Portrait of the Jester CalabazasDiego Velázquez, c. 1631–32Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Section 2, south wall

  1. Virgin and Child, by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, 1670s
    Virgin and ChildBartolomé Esteban Murillo, 1670sCourtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. A work made of oil on masonite.
    SitgesJuan Roig y Soler, 19th centuryCourtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. The Young Virgin, by Francisco de Zurbarán, ca. 1632–33
    The Young VirginFrancisco de Zurbarán, ca. 1632–33Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  4. A work made of oil on panel.
    SpainFrancisco Domingo y Marqués, 1878Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

Section 2, north wall

  1. Manuel Osorio Manrique de Zuñiga (1784–1792), by Francisco Goya, 1787–88
    Manuel Osorio Manrique de Zuñiga (1784–1792)Francisco Goya, 1787–88Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Portrait of Don Juan Antonio Cuervo, by Francisco Goya, 1819
    Portrait of Don Juan Antonio CuervoFrancisco Goya, 1819Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  3. The image shows an elderly man seated at a table. He is turned slightly to the side, with his right hand raised as if in conversation. The man has a long, white beard and fair complexion, wearing a blue robe with white trim. He wears a white cap and holds a pink book in his left hand. A scroll of paper hangs off the table, which also holds a globe, balance scale, and round objects. The background has a wooden panel, and the scene is framed by an ornate border with gold, green, and purple colors, typical of medieval manuscripts.
    Initial L with Old Testament ProphetMaster of the Cypresses, 1430sCourtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Section 3, north wall

  1. A work made of oil on canvas.
    Ecce Agnus DeiBartolomé Esteban Murillo, c. 1655Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. Seated Giant, by Francisco Goya, by 1818 (possibly 1814–18)
    Seated GiantFrancisco Goya, by 1818 (possibly 1814–18)Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art