Artist:
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Artist Unknown
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Title:
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Portrait of a Noblewoman
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Date:
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c. 1550
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Medium:
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Oil on panel
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Dimensions:
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30 1/8 x 22 11/16 in. (76.52 x 57.63 cm) (panel)
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Credit Line:
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Anonymous gift
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Location:
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Gallery 342
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The sitter in this portrait is a woman of significant status and most likely connected to the English court or royal household. She wears a French hood on her head, one indication of her high social standing. On the bodice of her dress is an elaborate gold brooch. The scene on the brooch is that of a seated woman playing what appears to be a lute. The white scroll around this woman is inscribed, Praise the Lorde for ever more. Brooches, among other types of jewelry, were very popular with members of the upper classes. The sitter also holds a portable prayer book encased in gold. Only the wealthier classes could afford to purchase such expensive girdle books. Among the ladies of the court, these prayer books were very much a symbol of status and wealth.
Artist/Creator(s)
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Name:
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Artist Unknown
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Object Description
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Inscriptions:
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Labels on the back of the panel or frame:
Royal Academy of Arts Winter Exhibition 1950-51 No. 45
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Classification:
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Paintings
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Physical Description:
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Portrait of a young woman sitting against a green background. She holds a small psalm book.
The book is actually a girdle prayer book, whether it is a psalm book or something else remains to be determined. NW 03/10
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Creation Place:
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Europe, England, , ,
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Accession #:
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87.6
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Owner:
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The Minneapolis Institute of Arts
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