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This painting is an example of Valdés Leal's weird, ecstatic style. St Ildephonsus, a seventh-century archbishop of Toledo, wrote an important treatise defending the purity of the Virgin, who, as a reward for his devotion, presented him with a priestly vestment. In this high-strung version of the miracle, Valdés allows his imagination to run riot. Under the chill glare of an unreal light, the gaunt, hollow-cheeked St Ildephonsus rapturously fingers the vestment that falls in a cascade onto his face. Every inch of the canvas is crowded with frenetic activity, as putti fill the sky and angels jockey for position around the enthroned Virgin Mary. In a surprising and shocking change of mood, three putti in the foreground struggle for possession of the archbishop's crozier.
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