Even though this piece is inspired by Rubens’s compositions on the same subject, particularly the large canvas in the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon (perhaps thanks to the prints of Lucas Vosterman), this composition is directly related to the personality of Cornelis de Vos, a painter who followed the Rubens tradition in his religious or mythological works but achieved an extremely high level of pictorial independence and quality in his portraits of the bourgeoisie.

Even though there are notable differences, so that they must be considered as entirely different compositions, this work is undeniably linked to the large canvas in the Museum of Seville. That work is generally attributed to Pedro de Moya from Granada, but Matías Díaz Padrón attributes it to Vos in the catalogue for the exhibition to mark Rubens’s centenary in Madrid in 1977. Certain elements and the general use of colour are common to both compositions. Certain formal questions enable this canvas to be attributed to Vos with reasonable certainty, such as the preference for cropped figures, the strong backlighting, the way in which the luxurious garments are depicted, the curtness in the precise way that he approaches his drawing and the vibrant, naturalistic way in which he depicts animals.

Alfonso Pérez Sánchez