Shepherd Boy
Can I see it?
Not on view at present
Where is “Shepherd Boy” now? Collection: Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Not on view at present. Checked September 25, 2026.
London, United Kingdom
It belongs to the collection, but is not on display at present.
- Checked
- In this state since
- Source
- The museum
About the sculpture
This statuette of a shepherd boy was made probably primarily for foreign visitors to Málaga, Spain. It may have originally formed part of a group of the 'Annunciation to the Shepherds', or the 'Adoration of the Shepherds', in the tradition of Neapolitan crib groups. Such terracotta figures were popular and well-crafted items illustrating folk costumes and traditions in the area. Many were sold to foreign visitors to the area. John Ruskin's parents evidently owned examples of such figures, his father being a London wine merchant with Spanish contacts. This piece is signed by Salvador Gutiérrez de León, one of a school of sculptors based in Málaga who specialised in genre figures of this type. His son Rafael Gutiérrez de León (1805-1855) also made such figures.
Victoria and Albert Museum
Details
- Accession number
- 325-1866
What it shows
In the catalog
Sources
- Victoria and Albert Museum
- Image: Victoria and Albert Museum — © Victoria and Albert Museum, London
