Plaque, pietre dure relief, portrait bust of Vittoria della Rovere, perhaps by Giuseppe Antonio Torricelli, Florentine, ca. 1680-1694

Oval portrait bust of Vittoria della Rovere, relief in coloured marbles. The Grand-Duchess is represented in profile to the right, wearing the black habit and white ruched collar of an oblate of the Suore Montalve. The portrait is set on an oval of grey-blue marble backed with slate, and is carved from black marble faced with yellow marble in the features and whitish stone in the collar.

This relief, together with its pair (Mus. no. 145-1869) depicting her son Cosimo III de' Medici, is attributed to Giuseppe Antonio Torricelli (1662-1719), a sculptor and gem-cutter who worked at the Galleria dei Lavori, the Grand-ducal workshops in Florence, specialising in hardstone inlay and carving. It shows Vittoria della Rovere (1622-1694), Grand Duchess of Tuscany and widow of Ferdinando II de' Medici (1610-1670). In 1696, Torricelli made an almost life-size commemorative bust of Vittoria, commissioned by her son (Museo degli Argenti, Florence). The artist was justly proud of what was an unusual achievement on that scale in hardstone (see New York 2008, p.190). The bust, and this relief, are generally said to be based on a marble bust of the young Vittoria by the court sculptor Giambattista Foggini (Galleria degli Uffizi; see Lankheit 1962, p.209; New York 2008, p.190). There is also a close relationship to a medal by Massimiliano Soldani Benzi (1656-1750) of c.1685, showing Vittoria in similar dress and facing left (cf. Detroit and Florence 1974, pp.136-7, cat. no. 90).

The two reliefs are created from coloured hardstone, pieced together like a jigsaw and backed onto slate. Here, Vittoria is shown in the habit of a member of the congregation of the Suore Montalve, a religious order for which she became the official patron in 1680, and for whom she was responsible for commissioning their church in 1686. This provides a terminus ante quem when she was already a widow, and the pair of portraits were probably commissioned by her son.

Purchased in Florence (through W. B. Spence, £2 10s.) in 1869.

This colourful relief shows Vittoria della Rovere, Grand Duchess of Tuscany as a widow, following the death of her husband, Ferdinando II de' Medici in May 1670. She is wearing the black dress of an Oblate or member of the congregation of the Suore Montalve, a religious order for which she was the patron from 1680 and for whom she commissioned a church in 1686.

The relief was made as a pair with one probably depicting her son, Cosimo III de' Medici (Museum no. 145-1869), in the Grand-ducal workshop that specialised in hardstone carving and inlay. The workshop was set up by Ferdinando I de' Medici, effectively as one of the 'state' factories (often referred to as the 'Medici workshops'), designed to produce high-quality works of art for the court in luxurious materials.

The pair of portrait reliefs, composed of intricately carved, highly polished pieces of marble, were probably made by Giuseppe Antonio Torricelli, a talented specialist in this type of carving that demanded a particular skill. They were probably commissioned by Cosimo III, and from his mother's dress, must date to after 1680. He also commissioned a stunning commemorative bust of his mother from Torricelli, dated to about 1697 (now in the Museo degli Argenti, Palazzo Pitti, Florence).

This exquisitely carved relief and its pair would have been displayed together as collectible treasures. Their craftsmanship and materials demonstrate the Baroque taste for such works, notably at the Medici court which promoted their production, and where it was much in vogue during Cosimo's reign.

146-1869