| "Las Meninas" or "The Maids of Honor" is an | | | | maintained around centrally positioned Margarita to |
| illustrious painting, the native of Seville, Spain, | | | | keep an entertaining company, along with a |
| Diego Velazquez created in 1656, as a court | | | | serenely sleeping Spanish Mastiff dog. The kneeling |
| painter of King Philip IV. In this oil on canvass | | | | maid (Dona Maria Agustina Sarmiento) on the left |
| work, the artist, who was quite close to the King | | | | of the princess is offering her a drink in a red cup |
| of Spain, makes his presence felt amongst the | | | | presented in a golden tray. The Queen's palace |
| royal family, in the Alcazar. Diego Velazquez was | | | | sentinel (Don Jose Nieto Velazquez) on the |
| one of the front runners of the Spanish Golden | | | | entrance's small staircase, also has his attention |
| Age and was well recognized for his competence. | | | | drawn. With his feet on different steps, Don's |
| At the time of painting this masterpiece, the | | | | right knee is bent and he is holding back a curtain. |
| artist's association with the royal family had | | | | The open door behind him and the lightening in the |
| touched thirty-three years. | | | | space there, reflect the studio's further |
| "Las Meninas" captures a family moment in the | | | | connectivity to the palace. The painting looks like a |
| royal home in Madrid, where the King and his | | | | camera clicked photograph, owing to its intense |
| Queen are watching their five-year-old princess | | | | perfection and a meticulously conveyed |
| daughter Infanta Margarita. The room this painting | | | | background. All the paintings on the background |
| was set in was Velazquez's studio, in the King | | | | wall have been covered with brilliant visual |
| Philip's Alcazar Palace, Madrid. The royal couple | | | | precision. |
| wanted Margarita to be the heir of the throne in | | | | "Las Meninas" has been a debatable masterpiece |
| the years to come. The maids of honor (Dona | | | | among observers, owing to its multiple |
| Isabel de Velasco and Dona Maria Agustina | | | | connotations. A few find it a medium for |
| Sarmiento de Sotomayor) keep the little girl | | | | Velasquez's self-admiration and for propagating his |
| entertained and occupied, while the painter | | | | influence and relation with the King. Precisely, he |
| presents his natural self in painting the scene of | | | | probably wanted to show his importance and |
| the royal family affection. The royal couple is | | | | closeness with the royal family. Most others found |
| visible only as a faint reflection in the mirror, | | | | that Infanta Margarita was the central noble |
| hanging on the wall, far behind Diego's figure. The | | | | thought. The Red Cross on the Velazquez's robe |
| Dwarfs, the bodyguard next to the governess, | | | | is supposed to have been added later by the King |
| and the artist himself are brushed as looking | | | | when Velazquez was conferred with the title of |
| straight out of the painting. This seems like a | | | | knighthood. "Las Meninas" is an unconventional |
| gesture acknowledging the presence of the King | | | | family portrait in the Western Art history, |
| and his Queen standing there. | | | | covering eleven people, including the reflection of |
| "Las Meninas" or "The Maids of Honor" reflects a | | | | the royal couple. Measuring 318 cm × 276 |
| lightly atmosphere in the castle. The chaperone | | | | cm, "Las Meninas (The Maids of Honor)" is |
| (Dona Marcela de Ulloa), wearing a mourning | | | | displayed at the museum, Museo dal Prado in |
| dress, is whispering to the bodyguard. The dwarfs | | | | Madrid. |
| (Mari-Bárbola and Nicolasico Pertusato) are | | | | |