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Diego Velázquez / Prince Balthasar Charles With a Dwarf
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Prince Balthasar Charles With a Dwarf

1631 · Oil on canvas

The two-year-old Spanish heir poses in armour and sash with a baton, while a court dwarf holding a rattle and an apple stands in front of him.

ArtistDDiego Velázquez
MuseumMMuseum of Fine Arts, Boston
MovementBBaroque
LocationBoston, United States
Genreportrait
Dimensions128 × 101.9 cm
SourceWikidata Q3138273

Why it matters

The young prince Balthasar Charles poses in state with a court dwarf beside him. It is the first of several portraits Velázquez painted of the prince, and the dwarf's identity is still debated.

Did you know?

  • It was painted in 1631.
  • Some scholars think the dwarf was added later.
  • The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, bought it in 1901 for $80,000.

Based on the Wikipedia article Prince Balthasar Charles with a Dwarf (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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