Una nueva interpretación del capricho Al Conde Palatino de Goya.

A new interpretation of the print Al Conde Palatino, published by Goya in his Caprichos (1799) is proposed in light of the controversy between two Madrid-based physicians, Francisco Javier Balmis and Bartolomé Piñera, in the 1790s. Piñera's disapproval of Balmis's methods to treat venereal diseases was reported in contemporary newspapers. Goya's image includes some of the elements mentioned by Piñera in his description of Balmis's experiments, while his characterization of the physician as a quack doctor belongs to a well-established iconographic tradition altered to allude to Balmis's specific circumstances. A comparison between the print and the drawing on which it is loosely based evinces Goya's creative process and his sharpening and refining of the composition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]