Media Information

 
 
 
Collection:
ADJUNCT MODULE C: WORLD ART
Preferred Title:
Portraits of Federico, Duke of Urbino and Battista Sforza [diptych]
Image View:
Overall view of inner portrait panels, set in frame that allows viewing of both sides
Creator:
Piero della Francesca (Italian painter, ca. 1415-1492)
Location:
repository: Galleria degli Uffizi (Florence, Tuscany, Italy) Inv. 1890 no. 3342; Inv. 1890 no. 1615
Location Note:
Piazzale degli Uffizi
GPS:
43.7684 11.2556
Date:
ca. 1472-1473 (creation)
Cultural Context:
Italian
Style Period:
Renaissance
Work Type 1:
panel painting
Work Type 2:
diptych
Classification:
Paintings
Material:
tempera on wood panels
Technique:
painting and painting techniques
Measurements:
47 cm (height, each panel) x 33 cm (width, each panel)
Subjects:
allegory; landscape; portrait; rulers and leaders; Battista Sforza Montefeltro, consort of Federico, da Montefeltro, Duke of Urbino, 1446-1472; Federico, da Montefeltro, Duke of Urbino, 1422-1482
Description:
The work was originally a hinged diptych, two panels painted on both sides. Federico da Montefeltro was one of the most successful condottieri of the Italian Renaissance, and lord of Urbino from 1444 (as Duke from 1474) until his death. He was renowned for being a Humanist intellectual, as was his wife, Battista Sforza. This work was commissioned shortly after Battista's death (1472); she was mourned deeply by the Duke. Her portrait may have been created by Piero from a death mask. The beautiful landscapes may have been influenced by Flemish painting. The portraits are the inner panels when opened; the strict profiles are inspired by Roman coins. When closed, the outer allegorical panels were visible, with two triumphal chariots, also based on Roman imagery. Battista's chariot is drawn by unicorns. The Latin inscriptions describe the virtues of the couple, personified above. The diptych is now separated and placed in a freestanding 19th century frame that allows it to be viewed from both sides. (Source: Virtual Uffizi Gallery [website]; https://www.virtualu ffizi.com/)
Image Description:
Although born into the Renaissance nobility and married to the Duke of Urbino, the title of "Duchess" was apparently not bestowed upon Battista.
Collection:
Archivision Adjunct Module C: World Art
Identifier:
7A1-PIERO-PDDU-A01
Rights:
© Scott Gilchrist, Archivision, Inc.

Portraits of Federico, Duke of Urbino and Battista Sforza [diptych]