Virgin of the Forsaken in Valencia
Second half of the XVII century. Taille douce: etching and engraving on laid paper.Not on display
The Virgin of the Forsaken in Valencia, like the Virgin of the Kings (G002479), this image was widely reproduced in paintings and prints, and was also held to be the work of angels skilled at combining sculpture and painting in an image of exceptional devotional significance. According to their legendary history these marvellous craftsmen were capable of producing an image whose aura of mystery extended even to the material used in its execution, as Villafañe stated in 1740: “The matter from which the angels crafted son and mother has not been ascertained, however much the faithful, or the curious, have attempted”
Arias Martínez, Manuel, Darse la mano. Escultura y color en el Siglo de Oro, Madrid, Museo Nacional del Prado, 2024, p.193, 195