Las Meninas or The Royal Family is the most famous of Velázquez's paintings, his undisputed masterpiece, described by the Neapolitan painter Luca Giordano as the "theology of painting". It is set in a room in the Alcázar, equipped by Velázquez as a studio, and shows the heiress to the throne, the Infanta Margarita, with her court. The queen's maid of honour, Dona Maria Agustina Sarmiento is kneeling at the Infanta's feet, handing her a jug of water. The other maid of honour, Dona Isabel de Velasco stands behind the princess, and beside her we see the grotesquely misshapen female dwarf Mari-Bárbola and the male dwarf Nicolasico Pertusato. Further back are a guard to the ladies and the lady in waiting Doña Marcela de Ulloa. Velázquez is standing with brush and palette in front of a tall canvas. The princess's parents, the king and queen, appear in a dark frame, probably the glass of a mirror. To the right of the mirror, on a flight of steps, stands Jose Nieto, the queen's palace marshal.

Preview	Picture Data	File Info	Comment
	Las Meninas or The Family of Philip IV 1656-57 Oil on canvas, 318 x 276 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid	1030*1212 True Color 123 Kb
	Las Meninas or The Family of Philip IV 1656-57 Oil on canvas, 318 x 276 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid	1200*1387 True Color 168 Kb
	Las Meninas (detail) 1656-57 Oil on canvas Museo del Prado, Madrid	1289*950 True Color 146 Kb
	Las Meninas (detail) 1656-57 Oil on canvas Museo del Prado, Madrid	750*961 True Color 75 Kb
	Las Meninas (detail) 1656-57 Oil on canvas Museo del Prado, Madrid	1050*930 True Color 120 Kb
	Las Meninas (detail) 1656-57 Oil on canvas Museo del Prado, Madrid	900*1162 True Color 137 Kb
	Las Meninas (detail) 1656-57 Oil on canvas Museo del Prado, Madrid	855*1100 True Color 160 Kb
	Las Meninas (detail) 1656-57 Oil on canvas Museo del Prado, Madrid	950*1222 True Color 156 Kb