"The Funeral of Count Olgaz" originates from a medieval legend: Count Olgaz was a famous gentleman and rich man in Toledo, his full name was Don González. Ruiz. As a citizen of Toledo, he was elected registrar of the diocese of Castilla and donated a large sum of money to the church of Santo Tome. Because of his devotion to the church, when he died in 1312, he should be buried in this church according to his last wish. But when the funeral was held, an amazing miracle happened: the Kingdom of Heaven sent two saints - Saint Stephen and Augustine - to descend from the sky, bury him with their own hands, and return his body to the earth. The painter arranged this legendary miracle like this: the painting is divided into two parts. The upper part is the scene of the count being recalled to heaven, and the lower part is the burial scene. In the lower part, on the right side of the coffin where the body is placed, a chief priest is reading scriptures devoutly in the crowd, and a monk on the left lowers his head in meditation, as if bidding farewell to the body. The crowd was arranged in a dense formation, organized at the main position at the bottom of the screen. These were the nobles and guests who came to express their condolences. They were all wearing black mourning clothes and white collars. Some had very rich expressions, and some were passing through. In fact, these people are from prominent families in Toledo. The artist used skilled sketching skills to depict the portrait features of these neatly standing figures. On the right, a priest wearing a white cassock stared at the sky with a surprised expression to illustrate the sudden miracle that had occurred. Standing on the left is a young man, holding a torch in his right hand. His eyes have left the holy book, his face is facing the viewer, and his left hand is pointing at the two saints descending from the sky, as if to attract the viewer's attention. This young man is none other than the painter's son Hoch Manuel (the painter's beloved son was born in 1578 and was just 8 years old when he painted this altarpiece. It is said that the artist's works record the year of creation). St. Augustine (on the right, an elder with a white beard) and St. Stephen (on the left, a handsome young man. According to reports, the person behind him with his right hand stretched out in front is the artist himself. Each work cleverly depicts himself. Among them, the outstretched middle finger and ring finger of the right hand are close together, which is equivalent to his own signature) is the central figure of the whole painting. They are carefully supporting the count's armored body in the foreground. The cassock on his body is carefully painted in the style of miniature painting. The embroidery pattern on it is meticulous and has a strong texture. The golden yellow color jumps in the picture, echoing the honey yellow color of the priest reading the Bible on the right; and in the upper part of the painting , the count has taken off his armor and is naked to accept the solemn summons of Christ and Mary.
Interestingly, the funeral attendees pictured here are dressed in the same garb as El Greco. The painter may have wanted to combine the three worlds, namely heaven, ancient times, and modern times, into a harmonious whole to express the pure illusion of religious concepts. The elongated shape and pale complexion of the characters in the painting enhance the solemnity and sublimity of the scene. In addition to the silvery white and golden yellow in the foreground, the entire painting is set off in dark blue and red with strong taupe; the shining armor on the count's body and the gray and black tones in the sky form a visual contrast between reality and illusion.
The characters in "The Funeral of Count Orgaz" are slender, and the saint wears heavy clothing that looks like it is pressed out of iron plates. The setting is a mysterious fantasy realm. The scene is grand, colorful, numerous, and the complex scene is breathtaking. The combination of mysterious religious colors and deformed real figures greatly shocks the viewer's soul.
The content of this work comes from a medieval legend: Count Olgas was a famous gentleman and rich man in Toledo, and his full name was Don Gonzalez Ruiz. Because of his devotion to the church, when he died in 1312, he should be buried in this church according to his last wish. But when the funeral was held, an amazing miracle happened: the Kingdom of Heaven sent two saints - Saint Stephen and Augustine - to descend from the sky, bury him with their own hands, and return his body to the earth. The painter arranged this legendary miracle like this: the painting is divided into two parts. The upper part is the scene of the count being recalled to heaven, and the lower part is the burial scene. In the lower part, on the right side of the coffin where the body is placed, a chief priest is reading scriptures devoutly in the crowd, and a monk on the left lowers his head in meditation, as if bidding farewell to the body. The crowd was arranged in a dense formation, organized at the main position at the bottom of the screen. These were the nobles and guests who came to express their condolences. They were all wearing black mourning clothes and white collars. Some had very rich expressions, and some were passing through. In fact, these people are from prominent families in Toledo. The artist used skilled sketching skills to depict the portrait features of these neatly standing figures. On the right, a priest wearing a white cassock stared at the sky with a surprised expression to illustrate the sudden miracle that had occurred. Interestingly, the funeral attendees depicted here are dressed in costumes from the same period as El Greco. The painter may have wanted to combine the three worlds, namely heaven, ancient times, and modern times, into a harmonious whole to express the pure illusion of religious concepts. The elongated shape and pale complexion of the characters in the painting enhance the solemnity and sublimity of the scene. In addition to the silvery white and golden yellow in the foreground, the entire painting is set off in dark blue and red with strong taupe; the shining armor on the count's body and the gray and black tones in the sky form a visual contrast between reality and illusion. Although "The Burial of Count Olgas" depicts a religious ceremony scene, it also has a somewhat philosophical meaning.
The characters on the picture look dazed, as if they are facing life and death, reality and illusion, and are falling into deep contemplation, depression, doubt, and contemplation, like the main melody in music, which has become the keynote in El Greco's works.