Isabella's Triptych In Capilla Real, Spain

‘The most important consideration about these paintings is that they resemble each other to a degree approaching bank notes’. Indeed, it is hard to elaborate why Isabella of Castile would commission an identical iconographic copy of her Fathers, King Juan II Miraflores Altarpiece. It is questionable to art historians, that are unable to answer to a full extent to why Isabella wanted a copy in her burial site in Capilla Real, Spain. The significant style of Rogier Van der Weyden, whose Triptych is reflective in allegory the story of the Virgin and Christ, perhaps appealed to Isabella’s catholic traits. Furthermore, for Isabella to commission a copy, one must question the role of the artist and their workshops to examine the Hispanic-Flemish
However, one can describe the iconographies and compare this to the utilizing question to why Isabella may have seen the Miraflores altarpiece appealing in its prominent narrative of The Virgin and Christ. Firstly, the triptych that is now in New York (Metropolitan Museum) known as the ‘Granada-New York altarpiece’ was split around 1632. The singular panel of ‘Christ appealing to his Mother’ was separated from the other two panels. The two panels were used to fit the doors of King Phillip IV of Spain reliquary, in Capilla Real. Thus, in order to compare the Triptych painted by Rogier Van der Weyden, one must compare the overall iconography of the three equally sized panels, while juxtaposing it to the Granada- New York panel of ‘Christ appealing to his Mother’. Despite this, Weyden’s triptych made in approximately in 1440 consists of three equal panels all 71x43cm. It is clear that the striking equalisation consists of a further comparison of the Granada-New York panel, evident in size that the panel is 63.5 x38.1cm. Although Pease talks about the comparing of original vs the copy in terms of bank notes, clearly the dissimilar and minute size differences, cannot properly suggest the