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Portrait of Princess is a tempera painting on panel attributed to the Italian Late-Gothic master Pisanello. It was probably executed between 1435 and 1445 and is also known as Portrait of a Princess of the House of Este. It is firmly attributed to Pisanello on stylistic grounds and because he stayed in Ferrara in the period, where he also finished a portrait and a celebrative medal of Marquis Leonello d'Este.

Portrait of Princess
Artist	Pisanello
Year	c. 1435-1445
Medium	Tempera on panel
Dimensions	43 cm × 30 cm (17 in × 12 in)
Location	Louvre, Paris

The princess is shown in profile against a background of numerous butterflies and columbine flowers. The butterfly (it seems a Vanessa atalanta) near the princess' brow is a symbol of the soul.

The painting is currently housed and exhibited in the Musée du Louvre in Paris, France.

History

This picture first came to light in 1860 in a sale, when it was bought by the German Consul Felix Bamberg. In 1893 the Louvre acquired it from Charles Picard for 30000 francs.

For a long time there has been no doubt in anyone's mind as to the name of the artist; but the identity of the sitter remains a mystery. The portrait represents a very young woman, hardly more than a girl. Against the background of greenery, with its sprinkling of butterflies, pinks and columbines, the profile is sharply defined. Her hair is styled to create the appearance of a high, round forehead, an attribute of beauty in Renaissance Italy.[1] Women of this era frequently plucked their eyebrows, hairlines, and drew hair tightly away from the face to accentuate this quality. [2]

The only solid basis for a hypothesis of identification is the embroidery on her sleeve, representing the two-handled vase of the Este family; this is also found on the reverse of a medal which Pisanello designed for Lionello d'Este. Attempts have therefore been made to connect the portrait with various princesses of this family. Pisanello was one of the artists employed by them, and stayed on several occasions in Ferrara (Italy), where he decorated a room in the Palazzo Schifanoia.

Margherita Gonzaga (d. 1439) might be one possibility for the sitter. She was the wife of Lionello d'Este, and the picture might have been painted at the time of their marriage in 1433. Another suggestion identifies this fresh and young face as Ginevra d'Este, because of the sprig of juniper on the sleeve - though this may simply be an emblem of happiness and not a pun on her name. She was the unfortunate niece and wife of the redoubtable Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta, who subjected Romagna to fire and arms, and whose shameless affaire with Isotta degli Atti was the scandal of the age. It was Malatesta who commissioned polymath Leon Battista Alberti to build the Tempio Malatestiano at Rimini. He had his wife poisoned in 1440, when she was only twenty-two. It has also been suggested that the lady in the portrait may be a Gonzaga princess: perhaps Beatrice, or Margherita, or the learned Cecilia, whom Pisanello also depicted on a medal (cf. image at right).[3]

Footnotes

References

• Todorov, M.F. (1970), L'Italia dalle origini a Pisanello (I disegni dei maestri). (Milan:Fabbri Editori).
• Ventura, Leandro (1996). "Pisanello". Art Dossier. Turin: Giunti (113).

External links

• Portrait d'une jeune princesse – Musée du Louvre (in French)
• Portrait d'une jeune princesse – Atlas database (in French)
• Pisanello's portrait on Web Gallery of Art
• Pisanello's Princess on Saint Passionate

На других языках

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- [en] Portrait of a Princess (Pisanello)

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[es] Retrato de una princesa de la casa de Este

Este Retrato de una princesa de la casa de Este está pintado a la témpera sobre madera, y está atribuido al pintor italiano de finales del gótico Pisanello. Probablemente se ejecutó entre 1435 y 1449. Se atribuye a Pisanello por su estancia en Ferrara en esa época, donde también acabó un retrato y una medalla conmemorativa del Marqués Leonello de Este. Se encuentra en el Museo del Louvre en París, Francia.

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[fr] Portrait d'une princesse d'Este

Le Portrait d'une princesse d'Este est un tableau de Pisanello représentant une jeune femme vue de profil, dont la silhouette se détache sur un fond de fleurs et de papillons. Peint vers 1435-1440[1], il est conservé à Paris au musée du Louvre.

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[it] Ritratto di principessa estense

Ritratto di principessa estense è un dipinto, tempera su tavola (43x30 cm), attribuito a Pisanello, databile tra il 1435 e il 1445 circa e conservato nel Museo del Louvre a Parigi.

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[ru] Портрет Джиневры д’Эсте

«Портрет принцессы» (фр. Portrait d'une jeune princesse, 1435—1440) — картина кисти итальянского живописца раннего кватроченто Пизанелло. Известна также как «Портрет принцессы из дома Эсте» и приписывается Пизанелло во многом потому, что он находился в Ферраре в то время и создал портрет и памятную медаль, изображавшие маркиза Леонелло д'Эсте.

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