Explore the The paintings of this artwork.
Both versions of the painting show the Infante Baltasar Carlos, at the age of about seven, on horseback in front of the Palacio del Buen Retiro outside Madrid; behind him is a dwarf. The horse is performing a levade, one of the "airs above the ground" of  the haute école of classical dressage.: 5:37 In middle ground of the original version, Gaspar de Guzmán, Count-Duke of Olivares, first minister to the King and riding-master to the prince, receives a lance – which he will then hand to his charge – from Alonso Martínez de Espinar, identified from an engraving, by Juan de Noort, on the frontispiece of his treatise on archery;: 271  they are watched by Juan Mateos, identified from an engraving by Pedro Perete on the title page of his treatise on hunting.: 271  Behind them, on a balcony of the palace, stand King Philip IV and Queen Isabel.: 272
Alonso Martínez de Espinar riding-master Gaspar de Guzmán, Count-Duke of Olivares Juan de Noort title page Pedro Perete King Philip IV airs above the ground frontispiece Infante Queen Isabel Juan Mateos Baltasar Carlos lance dwarf classical dressage Palacio del Buen Retiro levade haute école Madrid