The Betrothal of the Virgin
Ca. 1606. Oil on paper attached to canvas.Not on display
Although his work is rarely exhibited in Spain, Il Morazzone was, in fact, one of the most prominent figures of late Lombard Mannerism. This painting is a smaller-scale variation of a composition the artist repeated on several occasions—on canvas at the collegiate church of Santa María Nascente in Arona and at the church of Santa María Assunta in Gallarate, and as a fresco at San Vittore in Varese. Influenced by the work of Caballero Arpino, whom he met in Rome, his painting displays highly distinctive characteristics. It stands out for its elongated figures, with small heads and dramatic drapery, which lend them a great sense of monumentality.
A version of this painting, likely from the artist´s workshop, in which the architecture of the scene is depicted on a larger scale, is housed at the National Gallery of Scotland in Edinburgh (inv. NG 2812, 67 x 52 cm).
