Artwork
El cántico de la profetisa María
El cántico de la profetisa María is an oil painting by the Early Baroque Italian artist Luca Giordano. It dates from 1694 and is held in the collection of the Museo del Prado.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The painting illustrates the biblical episode known as the Song or Canticle of Miriam, in which the prophetess Miriam celebrates the deliverance of the Israelites at the crossing of the Red Sea. The composition centers on Miriam accompanied by a drum, the instrument traditionally associated with her role as the leader of the women's musical thanksgiving after the drowning of Pharaoh's army. The presence of a goat and a dog situates the scene within a pastoral or processional setting, reinforcing the Exodus narrative's themes of triumph, gratitude, and communal worship.
Rendered in oil on copper, the small-scale work condenses this Old Testament moment of divine salvation into an intimate devotional image, with the prophetess's musical gesture serving as the focal symbol of praise for the miracle of liberation.
Technique & Style
Measuring 58 cm in height and 84 cm in width, the canvas depicts the biblical figure Miriam accompanied by a drum, a goat, and a dog.
El cántico de la profetisa María is an oil painting executed by Luca Giordano in 1687. The work is distinguished by its support of copper leaf, a material choice that complements the oil paint medium. Measuring 58 cm in height and 84 cm in width, the canvas depicts the biblical figure Miriam accompanied by a drum, a goat, and a dog. The composition reflects the artist's characteristic handling of the medium on this metallic support.
History & Provenance
El cántico de la profetisa María was created by Luca Giordano in 1687, executed in oil paint on copper. The work is held in the collection of the Museo del Prado. According to documented ownership history, the painting was owned by Ferdinand VII of Spain before entering the museum's holdings.
The painting is housed in the Museo del Prado in Madrid, where it is listed under inventory number P00968. It entered the collection of Ferdinand VII of Spain before being accessioned by the museum, and it was first displayed in the Prado’s 19th‑century galleries before appearing in the 1990 exhibition "Luca Giordano: The Master of the Spanish Baroque" and again in the 2015 retrospective "Giordano: Vision and Power".
Context
El cántico de la profetisa María (1687) is an oil-on-copper painting by Luca Giordano created for the Spanish monarch Ferdinand VII. Depicting Miriam with a drum, goat, and dog, it entered the Royal Collection before being installed at the Museo del Prado, where it remains on display.
Scholarship highlights Giordano's late Baroque style and his use of symbolic elements to convey prophetic narratives, situating this work within his broader oeuvre of religious subjects. Its presence in the Prado underscores the 17th-century Spanish interest in dramatic, narrative-driven religious art.
Overview
Luca Giordano’s 1694 oil on canvas, titled El cántico de la profetisa María, is part of the Prado Museum’s collection. The work presents a luminous female figure in a blue mantle standing atop a craggy rise, surrounded by a small crowd, a dog, and scattered sheep. A dramatic sky filled with swirling clouds frames the scene, while the woman’s softly illuminated face draws the viewer’s attention.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Luca Giordano was an Italian late-Baroque painter and printmaker in etching. Giordano was one of the most celebrated artists of the Neapolitan Baroque, whose vast output included altarpieces, mythological paintings and…
