Etching printed in black on heavy cream laid paper, 1778-79. 370x310 mm; 14 1/2x12 1/4 inches, wide margins. First edition. A very good, dark and early impression with very strong contrasts and crisp plate edges.
According to Harris, the first edition "appears to have been small."
Felipe IV (1605-1665) ruled Spain at the height of its empire. He was the son of Felipe III and Margarita de Austria. Goya (1746-1828) based this portrait, as well as that of Margarita, Felipe's wife, on paintings by Velázquez (1599-1660) now in the Prado, Madrid. Delteil 6; Harris 5.
