The Immaculate Conception

This Immaculate Conception is one of seven paintings Giovanni Battista Tiepolo produced between 1767 and 1769 for the church of the former convent of San Pascual in Aranjuez, commissioned by King Charles III. It illustrates the Catholic doctrine that Mary was conceived without original sin. The Virgin stands on a crescent moon above the globe, surrounded by angels and crowned with a circle of stars, with the dove of the Holy Spirit above her head. At her feet a serpent holds an apple in its mouth, recalling the temptation of Adam and Eve and her triumph over evil. The lilies and the rose point to her purity, and the mirror to her spotlessness. Tiepolo works with pale tones and a golden light that gives the scene a luminous, elevated air. The final version is more majestic and solemn than the preparatory sketch, in keeping with the austere tradition of the Alcantarine Franciscans. After several relocations, the painting reached the Prado Museum in 1827.

Painter

Giovanni Battista Tiepolo

Date

1767

Medium

oil paint, canvas

Dimensions

279 × 152 cm

Museum

Museo del Prado, Madrid

Genre

religious art

Depicts

Mary on the Crescent, mirror, fountain

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