Neapolitan school; late 17th century. "Allegory of winter". Oil on canvas. Retains original canvas. It presents repainting. Measurements: 96 x 69,5 cm. Allegorical image in which the author has portrayed an old man in the foreground. The old man is represented next to a bonfire, bringing his hands close to the fire. Set in a landscape dominated by the presence of a house, the scene shows an interest in genre painting, as in a way it depicts a scene of an everyday nature. However, this theme, which is based on the periodic, harmonises with the conceptual, making it an allegorical work. A concept that stems from the naturalness of everyday and popular life and that at the same time connects with the idea of representing an old man in his last years of life, thus showing the end of a cycle. We can see how he has lit a bonfire and sits contemplating it, conveying a certain warmth to the viewer, defined by his act and by the qualities of the fire. This bonfire and its embers illuminate the old man's hands, although it should be noted that the painter has used an unreal light for the composition. Allegorical portraits emerged in the Middle Ages with the intention of exalting the qualities and situations of life. This type of portrait was used to exalt the qualities of a specific personage, such as kings or well-known personalities. In fact, during neoclassicism, this trend came back into vogue. In this particular case, it is not a portrait of a well-known personage, but the painter wanted to reflect the initial concept of the use of allegory in pictorial art. Dimensions 96 x 69.5 cm.