Saint Michael the Archangel

Ries was the son of a Flemish painter who settled in the international artistic community of Seville; in the 1630s Ries joined the workshop of the Sevillian painter Zurbarán, to whom this canvas was long attributed. It is now recognized, however, as one of Ries's finest independent works. Like his contemporaries in the Spanish Americas, Ries relied heavily on print sources for his composition, invigorating them with an exceptionally vivid palette. The dramatic subject became an important means for the Spanish Catholic Church to broadcast its mission to triumph over what it saw as paganism and heresy around the globe.

Credit: Marquand Collection, Gift of Henry G. Marquand, 1889