Eugenia Martínez Vallejo Explained

Eugenia Martínez Vallejo
Birth Date:1674
Death Date:1699 (aged approximately 25)
Nationality:Spanish
Known For:Subject of two portraits by Juan Carreño de Miranda

Eugenia Martínez Vallejo (1674–1699) was a Spanish court jester. She gained notoriety for her large size and weight, now thought to be the result of Prader–Willi Syndrome.[1]

Biography

Vallejo was born in the small village of Merindad de Montija, Burgos, Spain in 1674, to Antonia de la Bodega and José Martínez Vallejo. Her parents were poor and her mother gave birth to her in a church after her waters broke during mass.[2] [3] [4]

As an infant Vallejo had a decent appetite, and any initial weight gain was thought to have been a good sign, as both medical and aesthetic standards of the age considered slightly heavier frames on women to be preferable. By the time she was a year old she had already reached 25 kg (55 lbs).

By the age of six Vallejo weighed 70 kg (155 lbs). News of her condition had spread to Madrid, and it was at this age that she was summoned there to the court of Spanish regent Charles II in 1680. So fascinated was the king by her appearance that he got his court painter, Juan Carreño de Miranda, a noted Baroque portraitist, to create two full-body portraits of her: one clothed in formal dress and one nude.[5] The paintings are titled The Monster - Dressed and The Monster - Nude respectively.[6]

Within the court she fulfilled the functions of a jester,[7] her appearance serving as a source of shock and amusement. This situation was not uncommon for people with significant physical deformities during that time. Many monarchs held disfigured and disabled people in the ranks of their courts, often exploiting them for entertainment.[8] Despite her presence at court there are no records of financial accommodation given to her, and so it is likely that she was brought in only during certain events as entertainment.

Martínez Vallejo died in 1699.

Legacy

The two portraits by Carreño are currently in the Museo del Prado in Madrid. In 1997 a sculpture by Amado González Hevia, also known as ‘Favila’, was commissioned for the city of Avilés. He created a bronze statue of Vallejo, which stands on calle Carreño Miranda and is popular with tourists.[9]

Notes and References

  1. Book: Goldberg, Michael J.. The Dysmorphic Child: An Orthopedic Perspective. Raven Press. 1987. 978-0881672381. New York. 165.
  2. Dehesa. Jabato. Jesús. María. 2018. Breve noticia de Eugenia Martínez Vallejo, La Monstrua, una burgalesa en la corte de los Austrias. Brief news of Eugenia Martínez Vallejo, La Monstrua, a woman from Burgos at the Austrias court. Boletín de la Institución Fernán González. Spanish. 256.
  3. Web site: Rochet. Claire. 2021-01-26. The story of Eugenia Martinez Vallejo. live. 2021-05-12. Girl Museum. en-US. 2021-05-12. https://web.archive.org/web/20210512134513/https://www.girlmuseum.org/the-story-of-eugenia-martinez-vallejo/.
  4. Web site: Eugenia Martínez Vallejo, Naked - The Collection - Museo Nacional del Prado. live. 2021-05-12. Museo del Prado. 2021-05-12. https://web.archive.org/web/20210512004724/https://www.museodelprado.es/en/the-collection/art-work/eugenia-martinez-vallejo-naked/8e2d05fe-8310-469f-9154-45a7706515fd.
  5. Book: Beruete y Moret, Aureliano. The School of Madrid. Duckworth and Company. 1911. 204–205. 2022-04-23. 2022-05-25. https://web.archive.org/web/20220525062804/https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_School_of_Madrid/444TAAAAQAAJ?gbpv=0. live.
  6. Web site: Eugenia Martínez Vallejo, Clothed - The Collection - Museo Nacional del Prado. live. 2021-05-12. Museo del Prado. 2021-05-12. https://web.archive.org/web/20210512203130/https://www.museodelprado.es/en/the-collection/art-work/eugenia-martinez-vallejo-clothed/f8092cbd-8dd4-4c63-af63-1402940150f0.
  7. Book: The Rough Guide to Spain. Routledge & Kegan Paul. 2007. 978-1843537601. 12th. 608.
  8. Web site: MacMonagle. Niall. January 21, 2019. What Lies Beneath: Eugenia Martinez Vallejo, clothed by Juan Carreno de Miranda. live. 2021-05-12. Independent. en. 2021-05-12. https://web.archive.org/web/20210512203130/https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/what-lies-beneath-eugenia-martinez-vallejo-clothed-by-juan-carreno-de-miranda-37726214.html.
  9. Web site: Mancisidor. Myriam. July 21, 2021. La escultura de Avilés más fotografiada, "La Monstrua": casi ninguno conoce su historia ni el origen de su nombre. live. November 5, 2021. La Nueva España. es. November 6, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211106060019/https://www.lne.es/aviles/2021/07/21/escultura-aviles-fotografiada-monstrua-conoce-55280638.html.

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