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A young girl with pale skin, rosy cheeks, and blond hair stands facing us in front of a landscape with forests and mountains in this vertical portrait painting. The girl looks at us with wide, gray eyes under delicately arched eyebrows. She has a short, rounded nose, and her full, pink lips are parted. Her smooth, rounded cheeks are flushed. She wears a lace-trimmed, sky-blue, scoop-necked bodice that comes to a V at her waist, a full, ankle-length black skirt, and a white bonnet with a royal-blue ribbon, which has a pink rose at the bow. Her long, white, lacy veil, called a mantilla, drapes over the hat, over her shoulders, and to her waist. One end of the mantilla drapes over her left wrist, to our right. The other end is pinned under the back of her other hand, which rests against that hip. One cobalt-blue, pointed shoe with a silver buckle peeks out under her skirt. A small, shaggy, white-haired dog sits at her feet to our right. A low, gray stone wall behind the girl and dog angles away from us to the left. Some plants with dark green leaves grow in front of the wall to our left. Beyond the wall, pine-green, treed foothills rise to meet rocky, nickel-gray mountains under a ice-blue sky with pale, petal-pink clouds kicking up over the mountains. An inscription in all capital letters is painted in black in the lower left corner: “LA S.D. MARIA TERESA HIXA DEL SER. INFANTE D. LUIS DE EDAD DE DOS ANOS Y NUEVE MESES.” A crimson-red letter “B.” is painted to the left nearby. In the lower right corner, the number “15.” is painted in white and the number “5.” is painted in red.

María Teresa de Borbón y Vallabriga, later Condesa de Chinchón, 1783

Francisco Goya

West Building, Main Floor — Gallery 52

Lively and clever, the Spanish king’s eldest niece was just four-and-a-half years old when she posed for this portrait. Her confident stance and white lace mantilla (Spanish headdress) give the impression of maturity. The low viewpoint makes her look taller, as do the mountains in the background of the palace terrace. María Teresa’s father chose to marry below his rank, so the family was exiled to Ávila, Spain. They often invited artists to live with them there. Goya likely painted this portrait while staying at their home in August and September 1783. This was the first of four portraits that Goya would paint of María Teresa, who would later champion Spanish independence from France.

Dive deeper

Although Goya is now best known for his innovative and incisive depictions of such themes as the excitement of the bullring and horrors of the Napoleonic wars, it was as a portraitist that he first gained fame among his countrymen. In 1783, Goya was called to Arenas de San Pedro by the Infante Don Luis, brother of Charles III, to paint a family portrait. He also painted individual portraits of family members such as this one.

Ingenuous but self-assured, the future countess wears the fashionable attire of a lady of the Spanish court as she poses at the edge of a terrace. She gazes out at the viewer with an innocence very much in contrast with her adult costume and mature stance. In the style of earlier “grand-manner” portraiture, Goya may have manipulated the setting to enhance the image of the diminutive sitter, perhaps adjusting the scale of the parapet to her size and placing the wall close to her.

This is one of four portraits by Goya of María Teresa, with whom he maintained a lifelong sympathetic relationship. One of the most tragic figures at the court of Charles IV, the countess was trapped in a humiliating marriage to the King’s minister, Manuel Godoy, arranged by the Queen, Maria Luisa, for her own duplicitous purposes.

More information on this painting can be found in the Gallery publication Spanish Paintings of the Fifteenth through Nineteenth Centuries (PDF).

Object Data

Medium

oil on canvas

Dimensions

overall: 134.5 x 117.5 cm (52 15/16 x 46 1/4 in.)

framed: 154.3 x 136.8 x 5.7 cm (60 3/4 x 53 7/8 x 2 1/4 in.)

Credit Line

Ailsa Mellon Bruce Collection

Accession Number

1970.17.123

Artists / Makers

Francisco Goya (artist) Spanish, 1746 - 1828

Image Use

This image is in the public domain.
Read our full Open Access policy for images .

Detail Information

Inscription

lower left: LA S.D. MARIA TERESA / HIXA DEL SER. INFANTE / D. LUIS / DE EDAD DE DOS ANOS Y NUEVE MESES (The S[enorita] D[oña] Teresa, daughter of the Most Serene Infante, Don Luis, at the age of two years and nine months); bears inventory marks from the collection at Boadilla del Monte, probably by nineteenth-century hands, at lower left: B; at lower right: 15.5

Provenance

Commissioned by the Infante Don Luis de Borbón [1727-1785], Palace of Arenas de San Pedro, near Avila; by inheritance to his daughter, the sitter [1779-1828], Palace at Boadilla del Monte, near Madrid;[1] by inheritance to her only child, Carlota Luisa de Godoy y Borbón [1800-1886], Condesa de Chinchón, Duquesa de Alcudia y de Sueca, Boadilla del Monte, in whose possession it was recorded in 1867 and 1886;[2] by inheritance to her son, Adolfo Ruspoli [1822-1914], Duque de Sueca, Conde de Chinchón;[3] possibly bought in or purchased by the family at his (liquidation sale, Paris, 7 February 1914);[4] his daughter, Maria Teresa Ruspoli y Alvarez de Toledo, wife of Henri-Melchior Cognet Chappuis, Comte de Maubou de la Roue, Paris;[5]; her nephew, Don Camilo Carlos Adolfo Ruspoli y Caro [1904-1975], Conde de Chinchón, Duque de Alcudia y de Sueca, Madrid, by 1951.[6] Sold by the family by March 1957 to (Wildenstein & Co., New York);[7] purchased 2 March 1959 by Ailsa Mellon Bruce, New York;[8] gift to NGA 1970.

[1]Pierre Gassier, "Les portraits peints par Goya pour l'Infant Don Luis de Borbón à Arenas de San Pedro", Revue de l'Art 43 (1979): 21, note 24.

[2] Charles Yriarte, Goya: sa biographie et le catalogue de l'oeuvre (Paris, 1867): 138; El Conde de la Viñaza, Goya: su tiempo, su vida, sus obras (Madrid, 1887): 225, no. 29. See also Gassier 1979, 21, note 26. Biographical information on the Condesa and her descendants is given by Almanach de Gotha (Leipzig, 1939): 614-615; Juan Moreno de Guerra y Alonso, Guía de la grandeza (Madrid, 1917): 52; World Nobility and Peerage, vol. 87 (London, 1955): 158, 171; Domingo Araujo Affonso, Robert Cuny, Alberto de Mestas, Simon Konarski, and Hervé Pincteau, Le sang de Louis XIV, 2 vols. (Braga, 1961), 1:192; 2:492-497.

[3] Recorded in his possession by Richard Oertel, Francisco de Goya (Leipzig, 1907): 54 and Albert F. Calvert, Goya: An Account of his Life and Peace (London, 1908): 60. Also noted in 29 November 1988 letter from Ay-Whang Hsia of Wildenstein & Co., New York, NGA curatorial files.

[4] According to Cleveland Museum of Art records (European Paintings of the 16th, 17th, and 18th Centuries; Cleveland, 1982; p. 486) for Goya's Portrait of the Infante Don Luis de Borbón, which has the same provenance as the NGA portrait, Adolfo Ruspoli died in Paris on 4 February 1914, after which his estate was liquidated on 7 February 1914. Xavier Desparmet Fitz-Gerald, L'oeuvre peint de Goya ,4 vols. (Paris, 1928-1950):2:13, no. 292 claims that this painting was in the liquidation sale. Perhaps it was bought in or purchased by the family at this time.

[5] 29 November 1988 letter from Wildenstein's.

[6] 29 November 1988 letter from Wildenstein's.

[7] 29 November 1988 letter from Wildenstein's.

[8] Purchase date from Wildenstein's is noted in the Ailsa Mellon Bruce notebook, NGA curatorial files.

Associated Names

Borbón y Vallabriga, María Teresa de
Borbón, Don Luis de, Infante
Bruce, Ailsa Mellon, Mrs.
Godoy y Borbón, Carlota Luisa de
Ruspoli y Alvarez de Toledo, María Teresa
Ruspoli y Caro, Conde de Chinchón, Camilo Carlos Adolfo, Don
Ruspoli, Duque de Sueco, Conde de Chinchón, Adolfo
Sale, Paris
Wildenstein & Co., Inc.

Exhibition History

1986: Goya: The Condesa de Chinchon and Other Paintings, Drawings, and Prints from Spanish and American Private Collections and the National Gallery of Art, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1986-1987, unpaginated brochure.

2001: Goya: La imagen de la mujer [Goya: Images of Women], Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid; National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 2001-2002, no. 30 (Spanish cat.), no. 21 (English cat.), color repro.

2006: Goya e la tradizione italiana, Fondazione Magnani-Rocca, Parma, 2006, no. 27, repro.

2012: Goya y el Infante Don Luis: el exilio y el reino: arte y ciencia en la época de la ilustración española, Palacio Real de Madrid, 2012-2013.

2014: Goya: Order & Disorder, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 2014-2015, no. 48, repro.

Technical Summary

The painting is on a coarse, open-weave fabric attached to a lining fabric of heavy plain weave. The thin red ground does not conceal the fabric texture. Goya applied paste-consistency oils directly with a great deal of certainty. Because the dog is the only compositional element that overlaps adjacent areas, it seems possible that Goya had not planned to include the dog when he began the portrait. There is very little evidence of glazing. The painting is in fairly good condition with slight losses and abrasion. There is retouching in the sky at upper left, at the bottom of María Teresa's skirt (between her right shoe and the dog), and in the foliage at bottom left. The red ground may be more prominent in the sky now than at the time of the portrait's completion due to a combination of minor abrasion and increased transparency of the blue-white mix.

Bibliography

1867: Yriarte, Charles. Goya, sa biographie et le catalogue de l'oeuvre. Paris, 1867: 138.

1869: Lefort, Paul. "Francisco Goya y Lucientes." In Charles Blanc et al. Histoire des peintres de toutes les écoles: Ecole espagnole. Paris, 1869: 6, 12.

1887: Viñaza, Conde de la (Cipriano Muñoz Manzano). Goya: su tiempo, su vida, sus obras. Madrid, 1887: 225, no. 29.

1900: Lafond, Paul. "Goya." Revue de l'Art Ancien et Moderne 7 (1900): 46.

1902: Benusan, Samuel Levy. "Goya: His Times and Portraits." The Connoisseur 2 (1902): 31; 4 (1902): 122.

1907: Oertel, Richard. Francisco de Goya. Leipzig, 1907: 54-55.

1908: Calvert, Albert F. Goya: An Account of His Life and Works. London, 1908: 124, no. 60.

1914: Sentenach, Narciso. Los grandes retratistas en España. Madrid, 1914: 112-113.

1916: Beruete y Moret, Aureliano de. Goya, pintor de retratos. Madrid, 1915: 22-23, 171, no. 64. (also English ed. translated by Selwyn Brinton. London, 1922: 26-28, 205, no. 66.).

1921: Loga, Valerian von. Francisco de Goya. Berlin, 1921: 42, 188, no. 153.

1923: Mayer, August L. Francisco de Goya. Munich, 1923: 12-13, 186, no. 184. Translated by Robert West [pseud.]. London, 1924.

1928: Desparmet Fitz-Gerald, Xavier. L'oeuvre peint de Goya. 4 vols. Paris, 1928-1950: 1:15; 2:13, no. 292.

1930: Derwent, Lord George Harcourt Johnstone. Goya: An Impression of Spain. London, 1930: 32.

1951: Sánchez Cantón, Francisco Javier. Vida y obras de Goya. Madrid, 1951: 28, 167. Translated by Paul Burns. Madrid, 1964.

1964: Trapier, Elizabeth de Gué. Goya and His Sitters. New York, 1964: 2-3, 52, no. 1, figs. 1-2.

1965: Held, Jutta. "Literaturbericht: Francisco de Goya: die Gemälde." Zeitschrift für Kunstgeschichte 28 (1965): 235-236.

1967: Lurie, Ann Tzeutschler. "Francisco Jos de Goya y Lucientes: Portrait of the Infante Don Luis de Borbón." Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 54 (1967): 5, fig. 7.

1970: Gassier, Pierre, and Juliet Wilson. Vie et oeuvre de Francisco Goya. Paris, 1970. Translated by C. Hauch and J. Wilson. New York, 1971: 17-18, 61, 78, 94, no. 210, color repro. 59 (also 1981 ed.: same pp. as above.).

1971: Gudiol y Ricart, José. Goya: 1746-1828; Biography, Analytical Study and Catalogue of His Paintings. Translated by Kenneth Lyons. 4 vols. New York, 1971: 1:52, 243, no. 150; 2:figs. 244, 246, color fig. 245.

1974: De Angelis, Rita. L'opera pittorica completa di Goya. Milan, 1974: 98, no. 158, repro.

1974: Walker, John. Self-Portrait with Donors. Boston, 1974: 198-200, repro. 199.

1975: European Paintings: An Illustrated Summary Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1975: 160, repro., as Condesa de Chinchón.

1977: Wethey, Harold. "El Greco's' St. John the Evangelist with St. Francis' at the Uffizi." Pantheon 35 (1977): 205.

1978: King, Marian. Adventures in Art: National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. New York, 1978: 76, pl. 45.

1979: Gassier, Pierre. "Les portraits peints par Goya pour l'Infant Don Luis de Borbón à Arenas de San Pedro." La Revue de l'Art 43 (1979): 13, 18, fig. 2.

1979: Salas, Xavier de. Goya. Translated by G. T. Culverwell. London, 1979: 50, 177, no. 145, color repros. 33-35.

1981: Glendinning, Nigel. "Goya's Patrons." Apollo 114 (1981): 238.

1983: Gassier, Pierre. "Goya, pintor del Infante D. Luis de Borbón." In Goya en las collecciones madrileñas. Exh. cat. Prado, Madrid, 1983: 18.

1984: Agueda, Mercedes, and Xavier de Salas, eds. Francisco de Goya: cartas a Martín Zapater. Madrid, 1984: 107-108, no. 49; 109, n. 7; 121, n. 13.

1984: Camón Aznar, José. Francisco de Goya. 4 vols. Saragossa, 1: 150-151, repro. 274.

1984: Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington. Rev. ed. New York, 1984: 401, no. 568, color repro., as Condesa de Chinchón.

1985: European Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1985: 184, repro.

1986: Arnaiz, José Manuel, and Angela Montero. "Goya y el Infante Don Luis." Anticuario 27 (1986): 44-45, repros. 48, 49.

1986: Gassier, Pierre. "La contessa di Chinchón." Goya nelle collezioni private di Spagna. Exh. cat. Collezione Thyssen-Bornemisza, Lugano, 1986: 18-19, repro. 19.

1988: Symmons, Sarah. Goya: In Pursuit of Patronage. London, 1988: 98, repro. 99.

1990: Brown, Jonathan, and Richard G. Mann. Spanish Paintings of the Fifteenth through Nineteenth Centuries. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. Washington, D.C., 1990: 27-32, color repro. 28.

1991: Gingold, Diane J., and Elizabeth A.C. Weil. The Corporate Patron. New York, 1991: 151, color repro.

1991: Kopper, Philip. America's National Gallery of Art: A Gift to the Nation. New York, 1991: 263.

1992: National Gallery of Art, Washington. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1992: 89, repro.

2001: Goya: Images of Women. Exh. cat. Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid; National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2001-2002: no. 21.

2003: Hughes, Robert. Goya. New York, 2003: 113-114, color repro.

2020: Tomlinson, Janis. A. Goya--A Portrait of the Artist. Princeton, 2020: 73-74, fig. 8.