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Portraits of the Duke and Duchess of Urbino
Piero della Francesca · Renaissance & Mannerism
- Artist
- Piero della Francesca (c. 1415–1492)
- Date
- c. 1473–1475
- Dimensions
- 47 x 33 cm (each panel)
- Medium
- Oil and tempera on panel
- Location
- Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy
This pair of portraits shows Federico da Montefeltro, Duke of Urbino, and his wife Battista Sforza facing each other in strict profile, set against a vast, luminous landscape of hills, lakes and towns that stretches into the distance behind them.
A closer look
Federico is shown from his left side because he had lost his right eye and the bridge of his nose in a tournament; his famous hooked profile, red cap and robe stand out against the light sky. Battista's pale face, her jewels and elaborate hairstyle are painted with the precision of Netherlandish art. She had died in 1472, shortly after giving birth to their long-awaited son, and her portrait was probably based on a death mask. On the backs of the panels, the couple ride in triumphal chariots accompanied by the Virtues, with Latin inscriptions praising them.
History of the painting
The diptych remained in the ducal palace of Urbino for more than 150 years. When the della Rovere line, the later dukes of Urbino, died out, Vittoria della Rovere inherited the family’s art collection and brought it to Florence on her marriage to Grand Duke Ferdinando II de’ Medici; the portraits arrived in 1631 and have been in the Uffizi since the 18th century.
