Portrait of Cardinal Christopher Clavius
Medium
Engraving
Dimensions
12 3/16 x 8 7/16 in. (31 x 21.5 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1951
Accession Number
51.501.2510
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the grand tradition of Renaissance portraiture transitioning into the Baroque era, Francesco Villamena's * of Cardinal Christopher Clav* (1606) captures the intellectual vigor of one of the 16th century's greatest minds. Villamena, a skilled Italian engraver active in Rome, renders the Jesuit cardinal and astronomer with sharp precision, emphasizing Clavius's dignified gaze and scholarly attire. This engraving, measuring 12 3/16 x 8 7/16 inches, exemplifies the era's fascination with portraying luminaries whose ideas shaped the world. Christopher Clavius (1538–1612), often called the "Eucl...