One of the great attractions of this Christmas 2013-2014 in Madrid is the possibility of seeing the great masterpiece of the Spanish baroque sculptor Francisco Salzillo: his nativity scene.
Indeed, in the exhibition hall of the Cybele Palace, CentroCentro, Can visit the Salzillo Nativity Scene, which this year will take center stage as complement of the traditional Bethlehem of the City Council of Madrid which is exhibited on this occasion in the Fernan Gomez Theater for the Plaza de Colón.
The artistic importance of this nativity scene will help you with the fact that its exposure to the public transcends beyond the Christmas season, since you can visit it until February 2, and should not be missing in a route to visit nativity scenes this Christmas.
El Bethlehem of Salzillo has been transferred to the city council of the capital by the Salzillo Museum of Murcia, with the authorization of the Ministry of Culture, since it is a state-owned property.
It is considered as “one of the most notable Christmas sculpture groups in the history of Spanish art.”", according to the mayor Ana Botella during its inauguration.
Made in the last quarter of the 18th century by the master Francisco Salzillo, after a commission from the nobleman Jesualdo Riquelme, in this baroque-style nativity scene evangelical episodes are combined with traditional scenes from the society of the time.
The total set of Bethlehem of Salzillo It has 556 pieces, of which in CentroCentro 297 pieces are exhibited, as well as the architectures.
When visit the nativity scene, you will see that above all it is an exhibition of sculptural figures, free of the landscape scenery that characterizes most nativity scenes.
Various scenes take place in the exhibition, but the advice is that you pay attention to each of the individual figures, with their personalized faces and their careful elaboration.
You will be struck, for example, by the dramatic figures of the Massacre of the Innocents, or the detail of the collars on the shepherds' dogs to protect themselves from wolves. Or the baroque clothes of the pages of the Three Wise Men.
You will verify that the figures from the Salzillo Nativity Scene They are made by different hands, and in fact many of them were made after the artist's death and are the work of artists from his workshop, who followed his templates.
The figures, about 30 centimeters high, are mostly modeled in clay, some with glued canvas and fabrics, and later polychrome within the Rococo tradition of the time.
Among the scenes represented you have the Annunciation; the Dream of Saint Joseph; of course, the Nacimiento on a portal made by Pedro Collado; the Procession of the Three Wise Men; The Presentation in the Temple; the Herod's Palace; The Massacre of the Innocents; and the Flight.
But you can also see traditional scenes, such as musicians and dancers, hunters, butchers, spinners or cowboys.
Among the architectures, you have from the House of the Virgin, which is inspired by a typical Murcian adobe house from the 18th century, or the Herod's palace, an Italian baroque building.
Here you can consult the Visiting hours of the Salzillo Nativity Scene in Cibeles, as well as the prices of tickets to the exhibition.
Finally, don't miss this extensive gallery of photos of the Salzillo Nativity Scene in the Cibeles Palace, riding a Madrid.
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