The Virgin is shown at half length, her head inclined towards the pages of an open book. Softly modelled features and enveloping drapery create a contemplative image in which the act of reading becomes the principal subject.

In the catalogue of El Manto de los Pueblos, Ewa Kubiak relates this panel to a closely comparable composition associated with Mateo Pérez de Alesio in the Thoma Foundation. Similarities in composition, palette and handling support the proposed attribution, which is retained here as an attribution.

Dating from the late sixteenth or early seventeenth century, the painting belongs to the early development of viceregal devotional painting. Its small scale and concentrated composition invite close viewing.