José María Galván, a painter and one of the most active engravers in the revival of the etching technique as a suitable system for the interpretation of paintings, studied at the San Fernando Royal Academy of Fine Arts. His work was mainly based on the work of Francisco de Goya, a motif that is reflected in major institutions such as the Museo Nacional del Prado and the Real Academia de San Fernando, more specifically in the collections of the Calcografía Nacional, where numerous copies of this calibre are to be found.
All through his work, he was one of the most active engravers in the recovery of the etching technique as a suitable system for interpreting paintings, which he studied at the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando.
Throughout his life he received numerous honourable mentions, such as at the National Exhibition of Fine Arts in 1864, and third-, second- and first-class medals for his brilliant work as an engraver. In addition to all this, he worked as an illustrator for various newspapers such as El Arte en España, and for various seminars.