Portrait of an Elderly Man
| Portrait of an Elderly Man | |
|---|---|
| Retrato de caballero anciano (Spanish) | |
 | |
| Artist | El Greco |
| Year | 1587–1600 |
| Medium | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 46 cm × 43 cm (18 in × 17 in) |
| Location |
|
Portrait of an Elderly Man or Portrait of an Old Nobleman (Spanish: Retrato de caballero anciano) is a 1587–1600 oil on canvas portrait by El Greco, now in the Museo del Prado.[1][2] Its subject's name is unknown but he probably came from Toledo, where the artist was then working.[3] It was stored in the basement of the Real Alcázar of Madrid. The painting is signed in Greek characters "domenikos theoto: / kopol´´epoiei" on the right margin above the shoulder.[1]
Critical reception
Art critic Bartolomé Cossío praised the work in his 1908 catalog, stating: "It is difficult to find among all of El Greco's portraits a piece superior to this head, due to the severe precision of execution and the supreme simplicity of background and form."[1]
Copies
A watercolor study was made by Spanish artist Ricardo de Madrazo y Garreta in 1873. The 132 by 118 millimetres (5.2 in × 4.6 in) work on cardboard is dedicated "A mi querido Martin Rico" and signed "Ricardo Madrazo / Roma 1873".[4]
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A forgery is held by the Brooklyn Museum as part of the Michael Friedsam bequest, and is now attributed "After El Greco".[5] X-ray examination revealed that the work was painted over a cut-down piece of genuinely old canvas; the paint is modern, dissolves easily, and shows no proper age cracks under microscopic analysis.[6][7] The museum cannot deaccession the painting due to bequest restrictions.[8]
See also
References
- 1 2 3 "Caballero anciano". Museo del Prado (in Spanish). Retrieved 24 June 2025.
- ↑ Álvarez Lopera, José (2005). El Greco. Biblioteca «Descubrir el Arte» (in Spanish). Madrid: Arlanza. ISBN 978-84-95503-44-2.
- ↑ Scholz-Hänsel, Michael (2003). El Greco. Cologne: Taschen. ISBN 978-3-8228-3173-1.
- ↑ "Copia del Retrato de caballero anciano de El Greco". Museo del Prado (in Spanish). Retrieved 24 June 2025.
- ↑ "Elderly Gentleman (accession number 32.813)". Brooklyn Museum. Retrieved 24 June 2025.
- ↑ Fakes and Forgeries. The Minneapolis Institute of Arts. 1973. p. 116. OCLC 1551034.
- ↑ The Hidden Life of a Painting. Brooklyn Museum. Event occurs at 17:34–19:13. Retrieved 24 June 2025.
- ↑ Wagner, David (15 January 2013). "Why the Brooklyn Museum Can't Get Rid of All This Fake Art". The Atlantic. Retrieved 24 June 2025 – via Yahoo News.
