Finis Gloriae Mundi

Juan de Valdés Leal's Finis Gloriae Mundi (End of Worldly Glory) from 1670 is the companion piece to In Ictu Oculi, both painted for the Hospital de la Caridad in Seville. The painting confronts viewers with decomposing corpses of a bishop and a knight, while a divine hand holds scales weighing the deadly sins against symbols of penitence and prayer. Commissioned by Miguel de Mañara, these twin paintings represent the most extreme expression of Baroque memento mori in Spanish art.

Valdés Leal renders the decomposing bodies with unflinching naturalism, using earth tones and sickly greens to convey the process of decay. The dramatic composition and dark palette create an atmosphere of macabre urgency that serves the painting's moral purpose.