In the last few years of Goya's life he recovered from yellow fever alone in his home. Sitting alone at a table day after day while slowly decaying would cause anyone to stray from sound thinking. Fortunately for Goya, the dark and quiet closing years of his life influenced some of his greatest work.

Old Men Eating at first glance does not hold a candle to Goya's other works from The Black Paintings. However, if one thinks about how Goya literally held a candle to it, the true power of the painting emerges. After Goya's death this painting was removed from Goya's dining room wall. Late at night Goya would have sat across from these Old Men Eating and watch them. He would absorb the colors of the barely candle-lit room as the lights and darks bring out the phantom-like figures.

Could these disturbing men could be embodiments of Goya's fears? Could they represent of Goya's impending death? Perhaps the old men pointing to him beckon him to join them for clam chowder and biscuits at the dinner table of the afterlife? Or perhaps this painting foretells the new release of GOYA® Foods Latin American blends on September 9, 2009? We can only speculate what the meaning behind this painting is, but we can always watch in awe at the terrifying beauty of Goya's Old Men Eating.