Although this piece was traditionally attributed to Juan de Valdés Leal (1622-1690), both Elisabeth Du Gue Trapier and Alfonso E. Pérez Sánchez believe that it is the work of one of his disciples, Matías de Arteaga y Alfaro, judging from the style and execution of the figure.

This latter attribution seems to be supported by the fact that the urban landscape in the painting matches one of the pedestals of the altar built in 1671 in the main chapel of El Sagrario in the Cathedral of Seville on the occasion of the canonisation of the saint, carried out by Pope Clement X, which was featured in a printed illustration by Matías de Arteaga for the book by Fernando Torre Farfán Fiestas en la iglesia metropolitana y patriarcal de Sevilla al nuevo culto del Señor Rey San Fernando, 1672, although other authors continue to believe that it should be attributed to Valdés Leal.

The view of the city and the figures of the soldiers seem to be a better match for the craft of Valdés Leal around 1670, the time when this piece must have been made. However, the figure of the saint, which is overworked, is closer to the handwork of Arteaga. We ought to bear in mind that in 1917 José Gestoso notes that the painting was restored, with special emphasis on the figure of St Ferdinand, so perhaps a new restoration would reveal new data that would allow confirmation of the painting’s authorship.

With a few modifications, the composition is based on a print by Raphael Sadeler featured in Bavaria Sancta—a book of engravings that was widely used in Seville at the time, notably by Murillo—representing Guntarius, Bishop of Ratisbon. The elements are reversed and modified relative to the print. The architectural background is replaced by the vision of the soldiers and the walls of Seville, with the Giralda and the Cathedral, and the cherub is substituted for the Virgen de los Reyes, who announces the fall of the city to St Ferdinand.

In two superimposed planes, neatly defined by the curtain, we find St Ferdinand, dozing on a throne, and the city of Seville, with a battlefield in the foreground. The saint is wearing armour, a gorget, ruffed cuffs, and breeches with spiral designs reminiscent of Italian ornamental plant motifs. The attributes of the saint rest on a : the royal crown and sceptre, and the sword

 Lobera 

the “wolf-slayer” sword, a symbol of the power of St Ferdinand III, King of Castile and King of Leon, is kept as a relic in the Seville Cathedral. It is taken out on procession every year to commemorate the reconquest of the city from the Moors in 1248.

in its sheath. The other plane contains the representation of the battlefield with the city of Seville in the background—with the walls, the Torre del Oro, the Giralda, and part of the Cathedral—and, crowning the composition, the Virgen de los Reyes appearing to the king.

Ferdinand III of Castile, nicknamed “The Saint”, was considered one of the heroes of the Reconquista. The son of Berenguela I of Castile and Alfonso IX of León, he united both crowns under his reign. He managed to conquer the cities of Cordoba, Seville, Jaen and Murcia from the Moors, and founded the Cathedral of Burgos. He was canonised by Pope Clement X in 1671, and this piece may have been commissioned at that time.

It represents the apparition of the Virgen de los Reyes, patroness of Seville, to the monarch. According to tradition, when Ferdinand was camped in Tablada, during the siege of Seville and before starting the battle to reclaim the city, he retired to his tent to pray. Having dozed off out of weariness, he had a vision in which the Virgen de los Reyes promised him he would claim Seville. In the canvas, the Virgin, represented with her attributes of staff, medal of the city of Seville and a captain-general’s sash, holds a crowned Child Jesus sitting on her knees. When the king arose, he called his chaplain—the Bishop of Segovia and later on of Seville, Raimundo de Losana— and related the vision to him. Soon after, according to sources in 1248, the king could finally enter the city of Seville in victory after a fifteen-month long siege.