The Prado exhibits ‘The procession of giants in Brussels on May 31, 1615’ for the first time after the purchase of Culture

The National Prado Museum exhibits the work for the first time in its rooms ‘The procession of giants in Brussels on May 31, 1615’, by the flamenco painter David Noveliers.

The canvas, which was acquired by the Ministry of Culture in 2024, has been on display since this Monday in room 80 along with three other canvases from the same series preserved by the museum.

Precisely, this set was commissioned by Isabel Clara Eugenia and Albert of Austria, rulers of the southern Netherlands on behalf of the Hispanic Monarchy. The paintings in the series show various celebrations that took place in Brussels in May 1615, in which Isabel Clara Eugenia and her husband participated.

Thus, all the oil paintings have been incorporated with new frames, made specifically for them based on a historical-artistic and documentary study.

“This intervention seeks to recover an appearance closer to what the works must have had in the 17th century and offer a more coherent reading of several paintings in the series, both from an exhibition and historical point of view“explains the art gallery in a statement.

‘The procession of giants in Brussels on May 31, 1615’ arrives at the Prado, allowing four of the six preserved paintings from this series originally composed of eight large canvases to be brought together in the gallery.

Two of them are currently in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, while the whereabouts of the remaining two remain unknown. The one that joins the Prado is the fourth.

The work stands out for the “originality” of its theme and for the “extraordinary” level of detail with which it represents one of the processions.

It shows the giants and festive figures that walked the streets of Brussels, accompanied by representatives of different sectors of society.

“The scene has notable documentary and anthropological value, offering an exceptional vision of urban life, customs and public ceremonies in the southern Netherlands at the beginning of the 17th century“, adds Prado.