Arcadópolis
Portrait of the Marquess Massimiliano Stampa
Sofonisba Anguissola, 1557
What you see
Massimiliano Stampa stands full-length, dressed entirely in black: buttoned doublet, hose and shoes. One arm rests on the pedestal of a white column, its hand holding pale gloves; the other hand rests on a sword hilt. He looks straight at us with wide eyes. At lower right, a white and brown dog lies on the floor.
The black clothing stands out against a deep green wall and the white stone of the column, with panels of reddish marble. The light is clear and even. Look for the strings hanging from his ruff, the buckled belt and the boy’s shadow on the floor.
About Sofonisba Anguissola
Sofonisba Anguissola was born in Cremona into a noble family whose father wanted all six of his daughters to study art and letters, something very rare at the time. She painted her sisters playing, laughing and posing, and made so many self-portraits that her face was one of the best known of her age. She was painter and lady-in-waiting at the court of Philip II in Madrid and lived past ninety; in her old age the young Anthony van Dyck visited her in Palermo and drew her.
More by Sofonisba Anguissola
The Chess Game
Self-Portrait at the Easel
Self-Portrait with a Book
Miniature Self-Portrait
Portrait of Her Father Amilcare with Minerva and Asdrubale
Boy Bitten by a Crayfish
Portrait of Minerva Anguissola
Elisabeth of Valois Holding a Portrait of Philip II
Philip II
Self-Portrait
Juana of Austria with a Young Girl
The Arcadópolis Museum has 443 public-domain works in 40 rooms, free to explore in 3D in your browser.