Carlos José Gutiérrez de los Ríos y Sarmiento, VII Count of Fernán Nuñez (Carlos José Gutiérrez de los Ríos y Sarmiento, VII conde de Fernán Núñez)

Don Carlos Gutiérrez de los Ríos, 7th Count of Fernán Núñez, was born in Lisbon, Portugal in 1779. He was the son of the VI Count of Fernán Núñez and María de la Esclavitud Sarmiento de Sotomayor. He married Doña María de la Soledad Vicenta Solís Lasso, whom Goya also painted in a portrait that forms a pair with this one. He had a distinguished diplomatic career, with posts in the Congress of Vienna, in London and Paris. His diplomatic skills led King Ferdinand VII to elevate him from a count to a duke in 1817. He was also an academician of honour of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando. He died in 1822.

The count is shown here standing in the centre of a natural landscape, wearing popular dress with cape, wide-brimmed hat and boots. The black of his cape stands out in sharp contrast against the white of his shirt, which covers him up to his chin. His pale face is looking off to the left, giving him an air of elegance. His masculine face, with its bushy sideburns, gives a sensation of friendliness and warmth, whilst we can also note a certain arrogance in the way he is holding his head. Camón defines the subject's pose as elegant and Napoleonic.