Juan Francisco Pimentel, conde de Benavente

This portrait of Juan Francisco Pimentel, Count of Benavente, by Velázquez dates from around 1648, when the painter was at the peak of his powers as court portraitist of Philip IV's Spain. Benavente was a senior nobleman in the Spanish court hierarchy. Velázquez's court portraits are distinguished by an unsparing psychological honesty — he records his sitters' faces without flattery — combined with a masterly abbreviation of costume and accessories that gives his work an almost modern freshness.

The count is shown in the dark Spanish court costume characteristic of Velázquez's male portraits, with rich fabric rendered in broad, confident strokes. The face is painted with precise observation of the individual physiognomy, while the accessories are handled with swift, summary brushwork.