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Primary sourcePainting1796-1798

Two Naked Witches on a Broomstick

Francisco Goya y Lucientes · 1796-1798

A Goya etching from the Caprichos series showing two naked witches flying on a broomstick with an owl, satirising superstition.

Goya etched, captioned and signed this plate himself as part of his satirical witchcraft sequence.

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Etching of two thin, naked witches flying on a broomstick under a dark sky, with an owl flying above and a dark landscape below. Plate numbered 63 at upper right, with the caption 'Linda maestra' and the signature 'Goya' at the bottom.
Francisco Goya, Caprichos plate 63, 'Linda maestra!', 1796–1798. Wellcome Collection.

About this source

What it is

Captioned Linda maestra!, this etching is plate 63 from Caprichos, made by Francisco Goya around 1796–1798 and signed by him. It shows two naked, thin witches flying on a broomstick beneath a dark sky, accompanied by an owl, above a dark landscape. It is held by the Wellcome Collection.

Why it matters

This image belongs to a cluster of witchcraft scenes within the Caprichos through which Goya mocked popular superstition in late 18th-century Spain. The flying witches and owl are traditional symbols of night and folly, which Goya reused to critique belief in magic rather than to illustrate it literally. The series as a whole reveals Goya working as a social satirist alongside his better-known career as a painter.

Look closer

  • Why might Goya have chosen to show the witches as naked and thin?
  • What role does the owl play in the composition?
  • How does the title 'Linda maestra' (pretty teacher) change how we read the image?

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