On-line gallery
- Reference number
- P01686
- Author
- Rubens, Peter Paul (Flemish)
- Title
- Felipe II on Horseback
- Chronology
- 1628
- Technique
- Support
- Measures
- 314 cm x 228 cm
- School
- Theme
- Shown
- No
- Entrance
- COLECCION REAL
- Procedence
- Royal Collection
A posthumous portrait of Felipe II
wearing full body armor, a cape and
a hat and riding a horse. Victory
crowns him with laurels. The
background alludes to a battle,
probably that of San Quentín in
1557.
Inspired by the knightly ideas of
the sixteenth century, this
portrait is based on
representations of Roman emperors
that circulated on Flemish and
Italian prints, as well as an image
of Carlos V, Felipe II's father,
who appears in one of the
tapestries from the series The
Conquest of Tunisia, designed by
Jan Cornelisz Vermeyen (Ca.
1500-1559).
This work was made in 1628 during
the artist's second visit to Spain.
Rubens used objects from the Royal
Armory, including the armor and
sword, which are the same ones used
by Titian for his portrait of the
same monarch (P411).
This work is listed in Madrid's
Alcázar Palace in all the royal
inventories since 1686. A strip at
the top is an addition that was
painted following the fire at that
palace in 1734.
