Diego de Velázquez's workshop, 17th century

Workshop of DIEGO DE VELÁZQUEZ (Seville, 1599 - Madrid, 1660); 17th century.
"The sons of Jacob show Joseph's tunic to their father".
Oil on canvas. Relined.
Provenance: Collection of the painter José de Madrazo, inventory no. 440 "Jacob deceived by his sons", as an original by Velázquez circa 1630. Collection of the Marquis of Salamanca 1861, inventory 428 palace of the fifth of Vistalegre, same attribution. Private collection Spain.
Measurements: 172 x 328 cm; 186 x 343 cm (frame).

This work known as Jacob deceived by his sons has an interesting and complex historiographical trajectory that reflects the changes in the valuation of the work of Diego Velázquez and his workshop. Documented in the 19th century as belonging to the collection of José de Madrazo, where it appeared with the inventory number 440 and attributed as an original by Velázquez around 1630, the work passed in 1861 to the collection of the Marquis of Salamanca, inventoried with the number 428 in the palace of Vista Alegre, maintaining the same attribution.
At the beginning of the 19th century this painting was considered to be a sketch made in Madrid by Velázquez before his first trip to Italy. In 1630 the artist settled in Rome, where he painted the definitive version of the same subject together with The Forge of Vulcan. Both works were acquired in 1634 for 1,000 ducats by Jerónimo de Villanueva, prothonotary of Aragon, for Philip IV, as recorded in the Relación de gastos destinados al adorno del Palacio del Buen Retiro. Subsequently, Jacob and His Children was transferred to the Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, where the original painting underwent modifications in its format when its lateral ends were cut off.
The work studied here, which faithfully follows the model preserved in El Escorial (inv. no. 10014694), has a format in accordance with the original conception of the composition, prior to these cuts. This fact has been fundamental to revise the traditional hypothesis. Although Madrazo defended that it was a Madrid sketch prior to the Italian execution, based, among other aspects, on the type of preparation of the canvas, which he considered characteristically Madrilenian, at the beginning of the 20th century this theory began to be questioned. More recent critics consider it more likely that the painting is a replica made by Velázquez's workshop after the master's return from Italy, when the original work was already exhibited at the Buen Retiro and was enjoying notable success.
The more sketchy character of the painting with a more schematic treatment of the composition and a less detailed definition of certain parts contributed for a long time to its direct attribution to Velázquez, as it was interpreted as a previous phase or a preparatory study. However, this same aspect can also be explained as typical of a workshop replica, executed quickly to satisfy the demand derived from the prestige of the original. In this sense, the work not only testifies to the fortune and immediate impact of Velazquez's composition, but also constitutes a valuable document for understanding the workings of the artist's workshop and the diffusion of his models in the court context of the reign of Philip IV.