Alfonso II d'Este (1533–1597), Duke of Ferrara
late 16th century
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
47 x 35 3/4 in. (119.4 x 90.8 cm)
Classification
Paintings
Culture
Italian, Ferrara
Department
Arms and Armor
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of William H. Riggs, 1913
Accession Number
14.25.1870
Tags
Art Historical Context
This striking portrait depicts Alfonso II d'Este Duke of Ferrara (1533–1597), a prominent ruler from the illustrious Este family, which governed the vibrant Renaissance city-state of Ferrara. Painted by an anonymous Italian artist from the Ferrarese in the late 16th, the oil-on-canvas work measures 47 x 35¾ inches and captures the duke in a manner befitting his status, likely adorned with armor and a helmet as suggested by its placement in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Arms and Armor Department. Gifted to the Met in 1913 by William H. Riggs, it exemplifies the refined portraiture of Ferrara...