The Enigma of the Virgen de Belén
October 22 2021
Picture: sevilla.abc.es
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
An exhibition attempting to unlock the mystery of a curious Virgin and Child has opened in The Hospital de la Caridad in Seville, Spain. La Virgen de Belén (pictured) had carried a traditional attribution to Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, however, the exact details have always been rather murky.
New research and conservation has been revealed to suggest that this painting is indeed the work of Murillo. Furthermore, it is a copy Murillo made of a Virgin and Child made by José de Ribera dated 1646 (now in the Philadelphia Museum of Art). Murillo would have had a chance to study Ribera's canvas when it was in a neighbouring Sevillian town.
