The ‘true likenesses’ in Francisco Pacheco's Libro de retratos

Abstract

The name of the painter Francisco Pacheco (1564–1644) is often mentioned in connection with his pupil and son-in-law, Velazquez and for his book on painting, the Arte de la Pintura (Seville, 1649). However, during seventeenth-century Spain, and before Velazquez hit fame in the 1620s, Pacheco was recognized for his book of portrait drawings and eulogies, the Libro de descripcion de verdaderos retratos de ilustres y memorables varones, which remained unpublished. This essay aims to introduce the reader to the Libro and to analyse the role that the original drawings had in the context of seventeenth-century Spain. The concept of ‘true likeness’ appears often in the eulogies of the sitters, and indeed, in the title of the work. To Pacheco, drawings were the most accurate medium for an authentic portrait, and were also means to attract help in compiling the book, and social recognition, from colleagues and learned contemporaries.