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View of Toledo
El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos), ca. 1599–1600
El Greco was born in Crete, trained in Italy and settled in Toledo in Spain, where he lived until his death in 1614. This view of his adopted city is one of only two landscapes by him that survive, according to the standard references. Its exact date is debated, and the Met gives it as about 1599 to 1600.
The city sits on a hill under a heavy sky, with dark clouds opening to let in patches of light. The colours are not natural. The hill is a deep green and the buildings glow with a pale light. The proportions are also bent a little: the painter seems to have moved landmarks to compose a stronger picture. It is more of a portrait of a mood than a map.
The painting is upright in format, about 121 by 109 centimetres, which is unusual for a landscape and makes the sky feel taller. It came to the Metropolitan Museum in 1929 with the Havemeyer bequest. Many writers rank it among the greatest skies in Western painting.
From the museum record
| Artist | El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos) |
|---|---|
| Date | ca. 1599–1600 |
| Medium | Oil on canvas |
| Size | 47 3/4 x 42 3/4 in. (121.3 x 108.6 cm) |
| Museum | The Metropolitan Museum of Art |
| Credit line | H. O. Havemeyer Collection, Bequest of Mrs. H. O. Havemeyer, 1929 |
| Accession number | 29.100.6 |
| Licence | Open Access (CC0) |
Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art collection record. Facts such as dates, sizes and credit lines come from that record. The write-up above was drafted with AI assistance and checked against the museum record and standard references. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
