Piero Di Cosimo's Portrait of a Young Man
When this picture was bought, they thought it was
by Leonardo. It's the earliest picture in the collection,
painted around 1500.
This is the oldest painting in the gallery and is
an example of High Renaissance portraiture. It is one of the
few known portraits that can be definitely ascribed to Piero.
In 1813 it was attributed to Leonardo de Vinci and later
to Bolraffio. Nowadays its attribution to Piero
seems to be accepted.
It is painted on wood using tempera, a
mixture of egg yolk and pigments on a white ground made from
gesso. The colours used are a great deal brighter
than that of the later work seen in the gallery. At this
present time not all of the painting can be viewed as the frame
conceals an additional piece of the fragment. The 3-D image
and lack of shadows makes it typical of the Renaissance period. It
is extremely realistic and precise. This piece of work gives
a good example of how Piero’s style and technique is similar to
that of Michelangelo.
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