Portrait of Sister Francisca Dorotea (1558-1632)

Portrait of Sister Francisca Dorotea (1558-1632), oil on canvas according to the original painting by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (1617-1682) found in the Cathedral of Seville, Spanish School, 17th C., relined, restorations. Notes: Sister Francisca Dorotea, born in Santiago de Compostela on February 6, 1558 and died in Seville on March 13, 1623, was a Galician Discalced Dominican nun of great religious devotion. In 1590, she founded a community of Dominicans, which, after several displacements and changes of headquarters, culminated in the founding of the convent of Santa Maria de los Reys in 1611, in Seville. Sister Francisca professed in this convent in 1613 and died there in 1623. During the beatification process of Sister Francisca Dorotea, Canon Juan de Loaysa, postulator of the cause, commissioned the painter Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, in 1674, to paint a portrait of the nun. The portrait was based on a representation of the nun on her deathbed, as inscribed in gilt letters (not present in the painting we are offering for auction) and which would have been incorporated later into the canvas, possibly in 1688, when Loaysa donated it to the cathedral of Seville. A drawing was made of her and Cornelio Schut created a calcographic engraving, which was printed in Antwerp by Martin Bouché in 1683. This portrait became famous for portraying a crucial and very significant moment in the life of Sister Francisca. During her agony, intensely thirsty and about to die, Sister Francisca asked the sisters for a crucifix, but they hesitated to give her water, fearing that it would prolong her suffering. However, when she brought the crucifix close to her mouth, she succumbed to the wound on Christ's side, drinking an invisible liquid that quenched her thirst, a miracle that marked her life and her holiness. This mystical experience and the devotion of Sister Francisca Dorotea were perpetuated through her image, as a symbol of faith and her deep spiritual connection to Christ – vd. https://www.catedraldesevilla.es/la-catedral/patrimonio/pintura/ - consulted on 7-2-2025 at 11:54., Dim. - 47 x 37 cm