Español: La obra representa al rey
Felipe II de España (1527-1598) ofreciendo al Cielo a su hijo, el infante
Fernando de Austria (1571-1578), aunque la obra no sólo conmemora el nacimiento de dicho infante sino también la victoria de las tropas cristianas en la
batalla de Lepanto, que se libró en 1571.
English: Titian,
Following Victory at Lepanto, Felipe II offers Prince Fernando to Heaven, 1572-1575, oil on canvas, 335 × 274 cm
Philip II offering Fernando to Victory. Museo del Prado, Madrid.
Painted by
Titian in his nineties, this allegorical work celebrates the victory of a Catholic coalition over the Ottoman Turks at the
Battle of Lepanto in 1571 and the birth shortly afterwards of a male heir to
King Philip II of Spain, Don Fernando, which were both seen as signs of God's favour. The battle is shown in the background, and a bound and defeated Turk at Philip's feet. An angel descends from heaven bearing a palm branch with a motto for Fernando, who is held up by Philip: "
Majora tibi" (may you achieve greater deeds). Titian died in 1576 and Prince Fernando in 1578. Lepanto effectively ended Ottoman ambitions in the western Mediterranean. (Reference: Robert Enggass and Jonathan Brown,
Italian and Spanish Art, 1600–1750: Sources and Documents, Evanston: IL: Northwestern University Press, 1992,
国际标准书号 0810110652, p. 213.