Portrait of a Knight of Rhodes

Image credit: The National Gallery, London

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Notes

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The date 1514 is just visible on the letter carried by the sitter, although the words are illegible. The inscription in the parapet reads, in primitive French, ‘who loves well is slow to forget’. The sitter wears the Maltese Cross of the Order of Saint John. In 1514 Franciabigio was working for the Order painting a fresco of the Last Supper in their convent in Florence. The prioress who commissioned the fresco from Franciabigio was a Medici, and it has been suggested that the sitter of this portrait is Giulio de’ Medici, who was made a Knight of Rhodes in 1513. After Giulio was made Pope Clement VII, he was personally responsible for securing the island of Malta for the Knights in 1530. However, this identification is uncertain. Franciabigio’s portraits are among his finest works for their immediacy and psychological intensity.

The National Gallery, London

London

Title

Portrait of a Knight of Rhodes

Date

1514

Medium

Oil on wood

Measurements

H 60.3 x W 45.7 cm

Accession number

NG1035

Acquisition method

Bought, 1878

Work type

Painting

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The National Gallery, London

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