This composition is Raimundo de Madrazo's first known work, marking the beginning of his fruitful artistic career after his training at the San Fernando Academy.
It depicts the moment of the disembarkation and subsequent transfer of the remains of the apostle from Padrón by his disciples, guided by angels. The composition follows an elliptical outline, with the image of the apostle Saint James marking a diagonal in which, in the central part, the disciples can be seen carrying his body wrapped in a shroud that allows us to guess that it is complete, while his head is held by an angel, who has traditionally been identified with Cecilia de Madrazo, the artist's sister.
In 1868, the artist retouched the painting together with Mariano Fortuny, who added the figure raising his arms in the background on the right. In 2019, the piece joined the pictorical collection of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.
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