Diego Velázquez, oil on canvas, 1656
Diego Velázquez (1599–1660) painted Las Meninas (The Maids of Honour) in 1656. It is unclear who, exactly, is the subject; Margarita, the eldest daugther of Marie-Anne of Austria — King Philip’s new wife — appears near the centre, but the guards, attendants, and reflections of King and Queen also vie for attention, as does the figure of the painter himself. This work now hangs in the Museo del Prado, Madrid, where I had the great privilege of viewing it in January 2007.
