Oil/canvas, 72 x 59 cm
The composition of the painting, as well as the way in which the light is modeled (chiaroscuro), betrays inspiration from the work of José de Ribera or Caravaggio, although the painting was created later - probably as an echo of the Baroque style.
The figure is clad in simple folk costume, indicating the popular 18th century theme of so-called "folk types" - genre scenes depicting ordinary people in everyday activities, often in the context of music or work. Such depictions were inspired by both Italian art and earlier Spanish masters such as Murillo and Velázquez.
