Allegorical Figure
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
unframed: 145.8 × 99.8 cm · framed: 178.5 × 133.5 × 12 cm
Classification
Painting
Department
European Painting and Sculpture
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of the Friends of The Cleveland Museum of Art
Accession Number
1929.133
Tags
About this artwork
During the 1630s, the Genoese artist Bernardo Strozzi painted a number of female figures representing various intellectual and artistic pursuits, reflecting the appeal of such allegories among learned patrons in northern Italy. Recent scholarship has convincingly identified the subject of this painting as Minerva. The Roman goddess of war has put aside her armor for more contemplative pursuits; her upward gaze—as if seeking inspiration—recalls her other associations with wisdom, eloquence, and t...