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Portrait of a Knight of Malta (Scipione Papafava?)

Technical Details
  • Title
    Portrait of a Knight of Malta (Scipione Papafava?)
  • Author
    Bernardo Strozzi
  • Year
    c. 1629 (?)
  • Dimensions
    cm 129 x 98
  • Inventory
    5639
  • Room
    XXXII

The knight, portrayed in a three-quarter pose sporting the white eight-pointed cross of the Knights of Malta and carrying the red baton of a Marshal of the Order, may be the Paduan nobleman Scipione Papafava, the prior of Messina. His complexion, his ruddy cheeks and nose, the way he stands out against a dark background, the beauty of his lace and the thick brush strokes are all reminiscent of Rubens, while his academic formality may have been influenced by the presence in Genoa of Sir Anthony van Dyck.

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