Old Woman with a Hen is a small oil painting on canvas (75 × 63 cm) dated 1850 and held in the collection of the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg ^[3][4]. Although long associated with the Spanish Baroque master Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (baptised 1 January 1618 – 3 April 1682), the work is catalogued by the Hermitage as by an Unknown Italian artist, making it a fascinating case study in attribution and the international circulation of Murillo's popular genre imagery ^[3][4]. The painting belongs to a tradition of depicting elderly women with domestic fowl that flourished in seventeenth-century Spain and Italy, and its 1850 date places it well after Murillo's lifetime, suggesting it is either a later copy after a lost original or an independent work produced in his manner ^[1][3].

Attribution: the Hermitage's "Unknown Italian artist" designation

The painting's official record at the Hermitage Museum identifies the artist as Unknown Italian, a designation that directly contradicts the traditional attribution to Murillo ^[3][4]. The Wikidata entry for the work, which draws on the Hermitage's primary source documentation, lists the creator as "Unknown Italian artist" and gives the inception date as 1850 ^[3]. This dating is significant: Murillo died in 1682, so the painting cannot be an autograph work by the Sevillian master ^[1]. The Hermitage's classification suggests that the work was either produced in Italy in the mid-nineteenth century as a deliberate imitation of Murillo's style, or that it was misattributed at some point in its collecting history and later corrected by curatorial research ^[3][4]. The discrepancy between the traditional title—which names Murillo—and the museum's scholarly attribution highlights the challenges of connoisseurship for works in the orbit of highly influential artists.

Provenance: the Hermitage collection

The painting entered the collection of the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, where it remains today ^[3][4]. The Hermitage's digital collection record serves as the primary source for the work's current location and cataloguing details ^[4]. While the specific provenance chain—previous owners, auction history, and the date of acquisition—is not documented in the available sources, the museum's record confirms that the work has been part of its holdings and is accessible through its digital collection portal ^[4]. The Hermitage's attribution to an unknown Italian artist, rather than to Murillo, suggests that the work's history was examined by the museum's curators, who concluded that the traditional Spanish attribution could not be sustained ^[3][4].

Subject and iconography: the elderly woman and the hen

The painting depicts an elderly woman holding a hen, a subject type that Murillo popularized through his numerous paintings of contemporary women and children ^[1]. Murillo is best known for his religious works, but he also produced a considerable number of paintings of flower girls, street urchins, and beggars, which constitute an extensive record of the everyday life of his times ^[1]. The motif of an old woman with poultry was a common genre subject in seventeenth-century Spanish and Italian painting, often carrying associations with domesticity, the rural economy, and the vanitas theme of transience—the hen being a perishable creature and the woman's age underscoring the passage of time. In the context of Murillo's oeuvre, such figures were rendered with "lively realistic" treatment, a quality that made his genre scenes immensely popular and widely copied ^[1]. The 1850 date of this work suggests it was produced during a period of renewed interest in Spanish Golden Age painting, when Murillo's reputation as one of Spain's most beloved artists was at its height ^[1].

Technique and materials: oil on canvas

The work is executed in oil on canvas, the standard medium for Murillo and his contemporaries ^[3][4]. The dimensions—75 × 63 cm—indicate a modestly sized cabinet painting, a format typical of genre scenes intended for private collectors rather than large church commissions ^[3]. Murillo's own technique was characterized by a soft, atmospheric handling of light and a rich color palette, qualities that made his works highly sought after and frequently imitated ^[1]. If the Hermitage painting is indeed by an Italian artist working in 1850, it would reflect the enduring appeal of Murillo's style—particularly his ability to infuse everyday subjects with warmth and dignity ^[1]. The painting's small scale and intimate subject matter align with the taste for Spanish genre scenes that developed among European collectors in the nineteenth century ^[1][3].

Related works: Murillo's genre paintings

Murillo's genre paintings of women and children—such as his famous depictions of flower girls and street urchins—are well documented in his biography ^[1]. These works were noted for their "lively realistic" quality, and they provided a model for later artists who sought to emulate his approach to everyday subjects ^[1]. The Old Woman with a Hen at the Hermitage belongs to this broader tradition, even if its attribution to Murillo himself has been rejected ^[3]. The painting can be compared to other depictions of elderly women with poultry in Spanish and Italian art, a motif that recurs in the work of Murillo's contemporaries and successors. The Hermitage's decision to date the work to 1850 and attribute it to an Italian hand suggests that it was produced in the context of the nineteenth-century revival of interest in Baroque genre painting, when Murillo's name was frequently invoked for works of this type ^[1][3].

Frequently asked questions

Is Old Woman with a Hen actually by Murillo?

No. The Hermitage Museum, which holds the painting, catalogues it as by an Unknown Italian artist and dates it to 1850, more than 150 years after Murillo's death in 1682 ^[3][4]. The traditional attribution to Murillo is not supported by the museum's curatorial record ^[3][4].

Where is the painting located today?

The painting is in the collection of the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and is documented in the museum's digital collection portal ^[3][4].

What are the painting's dimensions and medium?

The work is an oil painting on canvas measuring 75 × 63 cm ^[3]. Its modest size is consistent with a cabinet painting intended for private display ^[3].