The Colegio de Nuestra Señora de la Encarnacion (College of Our Lady of the Incarnation), also known as the Colegio de Doña María de Aragón, was an Augustinian seminary in Madrid for the training of priests. Construction of the church began in 1581 and El Greco - who was resident in Toledo and had relatively few contacts in Madrid - was fortunate to obtain the contract for the main altarpiece. The agreement between the painter and the Council of Castile was signed in December 1596 and required El Greco to deliver the altarpiece (including carpentry, sculptures and gilding) by Christmas 1599. The altarpiece was eventually completed in July 1600.

The Doña María de Aragón altarpiece was the most important commission El Greco received and he was paid just under 6000 ducats for it, a vast sum, and more than he earned for any other work. It was here that he first fully realised the traits of his late, 'mystical' style - elongated forms, flickering effects of light, colour combinations that verge on dissonance (copper-resinate green, rose-to-magenta, golden yellow and blue), and an emphasis on ecstatic gestures and expressions.

The altarpiece was dismantled in 1810, following the suppression by Joseph Bonaparte of the religious orders in Spain. No detailed description of it survives, but according to a document of 1814 it comprised seven paintings and six sculptures. There has been much debate in recent years over the altarpiece's original appearance, but there is considerable agreement that it comprised five paintings today in the Prado, The Resurrection, The Crucifixion, The Pentecost, The Baptism of Christ and The Annunciation, and a sixth, The Adoration of the Shepherds, in Bucharest. The seventh painting is presumed lost and it has been suggested that it may have been a Coronation of the Virgin.

Suggested listening (streaming mp3, 8 minutes): Johann Sebastian Bach: St. Matthew Passion BWV 244 (excerpts)

Preview	Picture Data	File Info	Comment
	The Annunciation 1596-1600 Oil on canvas, 315 x 174 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid	750*1390 True Color 187 Kb
	The Annunciation (detail) 1596-1600 Oil on canvas Museo del Prado, Madrid	1227*900 True Color 179 Kb
	The Annunciation 1597-1600 Oil on canvas, 114 x 67 cm Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid	750*1294 True Color 199 Kb
	The Annunciation (detail) 1597-1600 Oil on canvas Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid	1000*1090 True Color 197 Kb
	The Annunciation (detail) 1597-1600 Oil on canvas Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid	1134*747 True Color 164 Kb
	Adoration of the Shepherds 1596-1600 Oil on canvas, 346 x 137 cm Muzeul National de Arta, Bucharest	650*1637 True Color 196 Kb
	Adoration of the Shepherds (detail) 1596-1600 Oil on canvas Muzeul National de Arta, Bucharest	632*971 True Color 161 Kb
	The Baptism 1596-1600 Oil on canvas, 350 x 144 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid	580*1457 True Color 221 Kb
	The Crucifixion 1596-1600 Oil on canvas, 312 x 169 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid	800*1495 True Color 191 Kb
	The Crucifixion (detail) 1596-1600 Oil on canvas Museo del Prado, Madrid	500*1628 True Color 130 Kb
	The Resurrection 1596-1600 Oil on canvas, 275 x 127 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid	700*1539 True Color 172 Kb
	The Resurrection (detail) 1596-1600 Oil on canvas Museo del Prado, Madrid	900*1232 True Color 180 Kb
	The Resurrection (detail) 1596-1600 Oil on canvas Museo del Prado, Madrid	896*1196 True Color 167 Kb
	The Pentecost 1596-1600 Oil on canvas, 275 x 127 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid	700*1492 True Color 153 Kb