Memorial Plaque of the Marquis and Marchioness of Las Navas. Love beyond death

The Middle Ages: The Christian Kingdoms(8th-15th century)Salto de línea

In the Renaissance, as in the Middle Ages, the burials inside the churches were repeated. The more or less elaborate tombstones and tombs indicated the social status, wealth and position of the deceased. The tombstone, located on the ground, covered the burial space and, in it, the deceased was usually depicted more or less of natural size, so that it could be seen as if the coffin were open and it was possible to contemplate the body.

This memorial plaque, dated after 1563, belongs to Don Pedro Dávila y Zúñiga and Doña María Enríquez de Córdoba, first Marquesses of Las Navas, and it comes from the convent of Santo Domingo and San Pablo, in Las Navas del Marqués (Ávila). Originally, the plaque was situated under the main altar of the convent church, in a privileged place of the temple as corresponded to the important social status of the couple.

Both appear represented in an architectural setting and luxuriously dressed. He wears an armor and she wears a skirt adjusted by a belt. Among them is his heraldic shield. At the bottom, an inscription mentioning the cause of death of Dona María, breast cancer. But what stands out is the way in which they both hold hands, in a gesture that shows the affection and the union of this couple and that would represent the triumph of love over death.