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Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
Portrait of a Man
Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
© Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami. All rights reserved.

Portrait of a Man

Artist/Maker (Italy, ca. 1460-1505)
Dateca. 1500
Mediumoil on wood
DimensionsSight: 17 3/4 x 13 in. (45.1 x 33 cm)
Framed: 28 3/8 x 23 5/8 x 3 1/2 in. (72.1 x 60 x 8.9 cm)
ClassificationsVisual Works
Credit LineGift of The Samuel H. Kress Foundation
Terms
    Object number61.034.000
    DescriptionThe Netherlandish portrait format of a bust-length figure behind a parapet was introduced into Italian Renaissance art by the painter Antonello da Messina (ca. 1436-1479) on his sojourn in Venice in 1475, and thereafter became popular throughout Italy. In this instance, the parapet consists of a narrow ledge that serves primarily as the substrate for the artist’s name: “FILI MAZOLA.” A second, now fragmentary inscription on the sitter’s collar may once have read, “ME[I] DEVS ET SIT FORT” (“May God Be My Strength”). The motto, together with the image of a lamb, a traditional symbol of Christ’s sacrifice, on the metal badge on the man’s cap, suggests that he may have been a lay member of one of the many religious confraternities in Italy devoted to prayer and charitable works. At the very least, these elements and the quality of the sitter’s clothing identify him as a wealthy gentleman, most likely from Parma or Milan given the artist’s sphere of activity.
    On View
    On view
    Collections
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Veneziano Jacometto
    possibly 1470s
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Lucas Cranach the Elder
    ca. 1515
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Vincenzo di Biagio Catena
    ca. 1510
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Francesco di Giorgio Martini
    ca. 1470
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Artist Unknown
    1859
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Artist Unknown
    ca. 700-675 BCE
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Artist Unknown
    ca. 1330-1350
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Alessandro Magnasco
    after 1735
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Giuseppe Maria Crespi
    ca. 1690-1700
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Jacopo Palma il Vecchio
    ca. 1510