Majorcan or Valencian school; second half of the XVII century.

Majorcan or Valencian school; second half of the XVII century.
"The Good Samaritan".
Oil on canvas. Relined.
Measurements: 100 x 117 cm; 104 x 121 cm (frame).
This painting is an eloquent representation of the Gospel parable narrated by St. Luke (X, 30-33), which recalls the fundamental commandment of love for one's neighbor. The scene is centered on the compassionate gesture of the Samaritan, who appears kneeling while carefully bandaging the wounded and naked body of the man being helped, making the action the moral and visual axis of the composition.
The work fully responds to the baroque language of the Spanish school, characterized by naturalism, expressive intensity and a clear narrative vocation. The figures, of monumental character, are strongly outlined on a sober landscape, built from a palette dominated by ochers and siennas, which reinforces the sensation of gravity and seclusion. The body of the wounded man, arranged in a marked foreshortening, is modeled through hallmarks of light that accentuate his anatomy and underline his vulnerability, while the lighting directs attention to the act of mercy that gives meaning to the scene.
The landscape background, open but contained, places the episode in a recognizable and close space, distancing it from any excessive idealization. The presence of the donkey, which discreetly appears from the right side, introduces a narrative element that refers to the journey and the humble condition of the Samaritan, reinforcing the moral reading of the passage. Overall, the painting combines compositional sobriety, expressive strength and iconographic clarity, distinctive features of Baroque production in the Majorcan and Valencian spheres, where the sacred image is conceived as an instrument of meditation and teaching, capable of moving the viewer through contained emotion and direct realism.