1816
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Mariano Ceballos, alias el Indio, mata el toro desde su caballo (Mariano Ceballos, Alias the Indian, Kills the Bull from His Horse) is a 1816 ink by Francisco Goya, a Romanticism work, depicting Bull, held at National Gallery of Art.
A man on horseback drives a spear into a charging bull while a crowd watches from the stands. Dust kicks up under the horse’s hooves. The bull’s horns look sharp enough to gore anyone nearby. This print shows a real event: Mariano Ceballos, nicknamed “the Indian,” was famous for killing bulls this way in 18th-century Spain. Goya made it years later, using tiny dots of acid (aquatint) to create soft shadows and texture. The etching needle scratched fine lines for the horse’s mane and the bull’s muscles, making them feel alive. To see how Goya turned violence into art, look up the technique: etching, drypoint, aquatint.
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (; Spanish: ; 30 March 1746 – 16 April 1828) was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker.
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