Although slavery was not common in Europe in the seventeenth century, the life of Juan de Pareja, a mixed-race Spaniard, proves that it did exist. Juan, like the much better known Leonardo da Vinci, was of obscure birth, but found himself working in the studio of a well-known artist. Unlike Leonardo, Juan had become the property of his patron, the famous portraitist Diego Velásquez. But in 1650, Velásquez granted the slave his freedom, and he made his living as an artist, though never coming close to the innovation and technique of his master. Still, his advancement from slave to free painter, and his travels through Europe, illustrate the social mobility that talent and willpower sometimes permitted.

1. An article with links to two paintings by Juan de Pareja (the second one, attributed to this artist, is a portrait of the architect José Ratés Dalmau) is available at
   http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/juan_de_pareja.html
2. Two articles on the life of Velásquez offer detail about his life and works:
   http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/velazquez/
   http://www.values.ch/Velasquez/velasquez.htm
3. A good article about Velásquez and his relationship with Juan de Pareja, including a discussion about the master's portrait of his slave (click on the link "Juan de Pareja"), appears at
   http://www.artchive.com/artchive/V/velazquez.html
4. Read a short, informative article about the history of slavery in Spain, with special reference to the early modern period, at
   http://www.africana.com/Utilities/Content.html?&../cgi-bin/banner.pl?banner=Blackworld&../articles/tt_338.htm