Spanish school; first third of the 19th century. "Holy Family with Saint John the Baptist". Oil on canvas. Re-drawn. It has a period frame. Measurements: 125 x 91 cm; 140 x 105 cm (frame). In this work the artist has carried out the representation of the Holy Family, following the sweet and naturalistic ways of the time. Through the use of a pyramidal composition in which all the characters are inscribed, the author gives greater prominence to the figure of Mary and the Child. They are placed in the centre of the composition, and next to them is a mature Saint Joseph, who contemplates the Virgin, absorbed in the scene that unfolds between the Virgin and Child. Saint John, who is located at Joseph`s side, tenderly approaches the Child, who lulls him complicitly with one of his arms. The family is depicted in a neutral interior, which is emphasised by certain brighter tones in the Virgin`s clothing and in the pearly skin of the little Jesus. The naturalness of the scene should be emphasised, as the Child turns his attention to Saint Johnny, or, for example, Saint Joseph`s hands crossed on his leg. This approachable attitude is used by the artist to inspire and indoctrinate the viewer, thus making him empathise with religion through a scene of a friendly nature. In the most common sense of the expression, the Holy Family includes the closest relatives of the Child Jesus, i.e. mother and grandmother or mother and nurturing father. In both cases, whether it is Saint Anne or Saint Joseph who appears, it is a group of three figures. From an artistic point of view, the arrangement of this terrestrial Trinity poses the same problems and suggests the same solutions as the heavenly Trinity. However, the difficulties are fewer. It is no longer a question of a single God in three persons, whose essential unity must be expressed at the same time as his diversity. The three personages are united by a blood link, certainly, but they do not constitute an indivisible block. Moreover, all three are represented in human form, while the dove of the Holy Spirit introduces a zoomorphic element into the divine Trinity that is difficult to combine with two anthropomorphic figures. On the other hand, this iconography was traditionally, until the Counter-Reformation, a representation of the Virgin and Child with the figure of Saint Joseph in the foreground. It was not until the reforms of Trent that Saint Joseph began to take centre stage as the protector and guide of the Infant Jesus.