Sculpture

The Patrimonio Nacional sculpture collection is one of the least known, despite constituting a very important ensemble. It has more than 6,000 works, made in a range of materials: bronze, marble, stone, clay, wood, ivory, wax, etc. The sculptures for altarpieces and those which form part of the architectural decoration are an outstanding group within the collection Most of the works are held at the Royal Palace of Madrid, both indoors and outdoors, as a considerable part of the collection decorates the facades and gardens of the various palaces.

The royal collection was first begun during the reign of Charles V (1500-1558), but it was under Philip II that the sculpture collection took shape. This king, known as "the Prudent", (1527-1598), considered sculpture to be a symbol or an expression of his royal status, in the sense that he could compete with other European courts of the 16th century and reaffirm his position as a worthy Renaissance prince. His father left him the works commissioned to the Leoni, and his aunt Maria of Hungary left him her collection of classical sculptures and antique bronzes. Philip II (1527-1598) commissioned the creation of the Altarpiece and the Royal Cenotaphs of the basilica of the Monastery of El Escorial. Jacopo da Trezzo, Pompeo Leoni and Giovanni Battista Comane worked on these works between 1578 and 1600, in an unprecedented project in Spain. His collection also grew through gifts from diplomats, with works such as the series of the emperors or the Christ of Cellini.

During the reign of Philip III (1578-1621), the main body of production shifted to altarpieces and polychrome wood sculptures for the royal monasteries and churches, with works by great sculptors such as Gregorio Fernández. Like his father, he also received remarkable gifts from diplomats. Philip IV (1605-1665) sent Velázquez to Italy in 1648 to buy antique sculptures and make moulds of the pieces that could not be purchased. Velázquez was able to hire the casters Pietro del Duca and Cesare Sebastiani in Rome to make bronze castings to decorate the so-called Octagonal Room of the Madrid Alcázar, along with Jonghelinck's series of the Planets. The results of this mission include the gilded bronze lions that currently adorn the Throne Room of the Royal Palace, to which we can add the acquisition of Bernini's Crucifix for the Monastery of El Escorial.

The arrival of a new dynasty brought a substantial change in the artistic and aesthetic ideals of the Spanish court. Philip V and his second wife, Elisabeth Farnese, were the protagonists of the first purchase of an important collection of antiques on the Roman art market. They were responsible for the acquisition in 1724 of the sculpture collection that had belonged to Queen Cristina of Sweden (1626-1689), to decorate the Palace of La Granja de San Ildefonso. The sculptures and groups that animate these gardens were made of marble or lead varnished to imitate bronze, by French artists such as René Frémin, Jean Thierry, Hubert Dumandré and Jacques Bousseau.

During the reigns of Charles III and Charles IV, the collection grew considerably in size, especially when it absorbed the collection of Ambassador Azara, part of which is displayed in the Royal House of Labrador in Aranjuez. With the creation of the Prado Museum during the reign of Fernando VII, a selection of the masterpieces in the sculpture collection were moved to the new museum. However, the works that can be seen today at the various royal sites are magnificent examples of the best artists of each period. Italian artists such as Leoni, Bernini or Cellini share these spaces with the sculptors of the Spanish Baroque, such as Gregorio Fernández, Pedro de Mena, José de Mora or Luisa Roldán, whose works are located on the royal estates. 19th and 20th century sculptures focused on portraits of the royal family, with works by such renowned authors as José Piquer, Francisco Pérez del Valle, Agustín Querol and Mariano Benlliure, amongst others.