Saint Isidore the Labourer
Mid-XVIIcentury. Black chalk on laid paper.Not on display
On the right, kneeling in left profile, Saint Isidore is depicted in prayer. He appears with a prod resting on his shoulder. On the left, an angel drives the plough that is pulled by the two oxen at the centre of the composition.
It appears to be a work from Madrid dating from the middle of the century. Something about the angel evokes models from Claudio Coello’s circle, although the technique is quite different from what was typical at that time. The Italian origin of the drawing and its meticulous execution are surprising.
Pérez Sánchez, Alfonso E., Catálogo de Dibujos. Vol. I. Dibujos españoles siglos XV-XVII, Madrid, Museo del Prado, 1972, p.152
