Philip II (r. 1556-98) was Titian´s most important patron, and together they forged one of the most fruitful artistic relationships of the European Renaissance. Philip surpassed all of the Venetian painter´s previous patrons both in the number of commissions and in their variety. Unlike his father, Emperor Charles V (r. 1519-56), Philip was not satisfied with only portraits and devotional works; h
This painting commemorates events that took place in 1571: the defeat of the Turkish armada at Lepanto on October 7, and the birth of the infante Fernando, heir to the throne, on December 5th. The proximity of these two events led them to be viewed repeatedly as gifts from Heaven in circles close to the monarch. Thus, a letter from Luis de Requesens, Governer of Milan to Sancho de Padilla, dated D
The painting is a faithful visualisation of Genesis 30, 9-19 in which Eve is blamed for accepting the forbidden fruit (although the type of fruit is not stated, Titian follows tradition and opts for an apple) and there is a reference to a second tree, a fig, whose leaves are used by Adam and Eve to cover their nakedness. Although we do not have a definite date for this painting, nor do we know the
This portrait commemorates Charles V’s victory over the Schmalkaldic League at Mühlberg on 24 April 1547. The Emperor is equipped in the manner of the light cavalry with a half pike and wheel-lock pistol. His suit of armour was made around 1545 by Desiderius Helmschmid and has an image of the Virgin and Child on the breastplate, as was customary with Charles’ armour from 1531. Panofsky pointe
The authorship, dating and iconography of this work are all controversial. It was described as being by Titian in the Libro de entregas of the Escorial in 1593, an opinion maintained by Sigüenza but not by Cassiano dal Pozzo, who attributed it in 1626 to Giorgione, and it was described as such in 1839 when it entered the Museo del Prado. However, since Crowe and Cavalcaselle, it has been attr