Appreciation of the famous Spanish painting "The Maid"

[New Sancai Compilation First Edition] "Las Meninas" (Las Meninas) is a painting created by Spanish Golden Age painter Diego Velázquez in 1656 and is now collected in the Museo del Prado in Madrid. Due to the complexity of the work, it is one of the most analyzed and studied works in Western painting.

The large room depicted in "The Maid" is located in the Madrid palace of King Felipe IV of Spain, and the characters depicted in the painting are members of the Spanish court.

(1) Standing in the center of the foreground is 5-year-old Princess Margaret Theresa.

(2) The person preparing to curtsy to the princess is Doña Isabel de Velasco).

(3) Kneeling in front of the princess and placing a drink on the tray is another maid, Doña María Agustina Sarmiento de Sotomayor.

(4) To the right of the princess, the achondroplasia dwarf is Mari Bárbola.

(5) To the right of the princess, the dwarf stepping on the mastiff with one foot is Nicolás Pertusato

(6) Standing in the back is Doña Marcela de Ulloa, the princess’ guardian

(7) Standing nearby are the princess's bodyguards (or Guardadamas).

(8) The person standing on the right side of the back, with his right knee bent and his feet on different steps, is the Queen's attendant.

(9) Court painter Don José Nieto Velázquez wears the red cross of the Order of Santiago on his chest. When he created this painting, he had been working in the royal family for 33 years.

(10, 11) The upper bodies of the figures reflected in the mirror are King Philip IV and Queen Mariana.

(Compiled by: Bai Ding)

(Editor: Jiang Qiming)

(Source of the article: First published by Xinsancai)