How a 17th-century art dealer bought top works at bargain prices for the Prado Museum

"It is impossible to put a figure on it. But in their day, they did have a specific value. This story of painting, ambition, and money begins with the beheading in 1649 of Charles I, King of England, and ends with no fewer than 5,539 paintings distributed among 12 royal sites in Spain. The English monarch's death also led to the dispersal of the collections of the Earl of Arundel, the Earl of Hamilton, and the heirs of George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham."

"Spain in the days of Philip IV had immense wealth. The Spanish king wisely sent Alonso de Cardenas as a resident agent to England in 1635. Charles I, who was rather clumsy at recognizing people's expertise, said of him that he was foolish, ignorant, and eccentric. He was wrong on all counts. His own beheading was the beginning of the real feast. The dismantling of the English art collections was the opportunity of the century."

"At that time, according to the art historian Jonathan Brown, an expert in Spanish Baroque art, the most valuable work was the Holy Family, also known as The Pearl because it was considered the pearl of the collection. It was valued at 2,500. Spain would acquire it for around 4,000 escudos, which would be around $844,374 (720,000) in today's currency, although the exact figure is unknown. Today the painting still dazzles visitors to Madrid's Prado Museum."

It is impossible to assign a monetary value to the Prado's collection today, but many works had specific prices when acquired. The narrative begins with Charles I's 1649 beheading, which triggered dispersal of royal collections including those of Arundel, Hamilton, and Buckingham heirs, flooding the market. Purchases were often made unseen through discreet resident agents because travel was slow and risky. Spain under Philip IV, wealthy and strategic, sent Alonso de Cardenas to England in 1635; he secured major works. Parliament sold pieces to settle debts, and Spain bought masterpieces such as Titian's Holy Family, known as The Pearl.

Read at english.elpais.com