Fire flags (preparatory drawing)

See How the ancient Spaniards hunted bulls on horseback in the countryside.

Preparatory drawing for the print Fire flags. This is a colourful composition depicting the chaos in the bullring. It reflects the moment when the bull, who is tame, has the banderillas attached to him lit up in order to whip him up and get him into the game. This was not something that was done very often, but it seems to have been very popular with the public, who liked it very much.

Here Goya groups different characters together, which he later modified and lightened in the engraving so that the main characters would stand out. However, the most important part of the drawing will remain in the print: the bull with its back to the viewer and the banderillero who calls the bull's attention so that it will come to him and he can stick another pair of banderillas. In the background of the drawing we see the two picadors who also appear in the engraving, who, as was customary, have remained in the bullring after the suerte de varas. In the background we can make out the barrier and the spectators in the bullring, which are barely sketched.