Portrait of a Woman (Lucrezia Maraini)
This painting entered the Borghese Collection in 1907. It portrays a young noblewoman, whose name – Lucrezia Maraini – appears in the inscription in the upper left hand corner. The elegantly dressed woman is portrayed against a dark background together with a small dog, symbol of marital union and fidelity; in all likelihood the animal alludes to the rectitude and sobriety of the subject.
Object details
Inventory
Location
Date
Classification
Period
Medium
Dimensions
Provenance
Purchased by Italian state, 1907 (Della Pergola 1955).
Inscriptions
In alto a sinistra: 'M. LUCRETIA . L. MARAINUS'
Commentary
This work was purchased in 1907 for 3,500 lire (Della Pergola 1955). While Roberto Longhi (1928) ascribed it to either Scipione Pulzone or Lavinia Fontana, Paola della Pergola was persuaded by neither name, opting rather to publish the portrait in 1955 as by an ‘unknown 17th-century artist’. In the 2006 image catalogue of the Galleria Borghese, Kristina Herrmann Fiore revived Longhi’s suggestion, publishing the canvas as by a ‘follower of Lavinia Fontana’.
Antonio Iommelli
Bibliography
- L. Mariotti, Cenni su Scipione Pulzone detto Gaetano Ritrattista, in “L’Arte”, XXVII, 1924, pp. 27-28;
- R. Longhi, Precisioni nelle Gallerie Italiane, I, La R. Galleria Borghese, Roma 1928, p. 225;
- P. della Pergola, La Galleria Borghese. I Dipinti, I, Roma 1955, p. 143;
- A. Ghirardi, Una pittrice bolognese nella Roma di primo Seicento, in “Il Carrobbio”, X, 1984, pp. 158-159;
- K. Herrmann Fiore, Galleria Borghese Roma scopre un tesoro. Dalla pinacoteca ai depositi un museo che non ha più segreti, San Giuliano Milanese 2006, p. 173.
