Bartolomé Esteban Murillo was a Spanish baroque painter who lived in the southern city of Seville where he focused mainly on religious paintings. During a stay in Madrid from 1648 to 1650 he encountered the works of Rubens, van Dyck and Tizian. Under their influence, he developed his mature style characterised by a polished flowing and a transparent technique. It reaches a highpoint in this painting of dice playing children.

This is a so-called genre painting with everyday life in Seville as its theme. Murillo shows two shabbily dressed boys with dirty feet, sitting in the dust on the side of a street. They’re entirely absorbed in their game of dice and in their childish simplicity, are playing for nothing more than green acorns. Perhaps Murillo intended to exhort the pious citizens who purchased this painting to rescue these innocent souls from the street befor they grew up to fall victim to the vice of gambling.

Even in the 17th century Murillos genre paintings were highly coveted and commanded impressive prices on the European art market.