(Italian, 1503-1572)

Portrait of Cosimo I at Age Forty (B. 10), unsigned, two 18th/19th century collection seals verso for the Duke of Hamilton and for the Duchess Seymour, 16th century, oil on panel, 23 x 17-5/8 in.; reverse profile gilt wood frame, 33 x 27-1/2 x 3-3/4 in.

Provenance: Per wax seals and note verso, Archibald Hamilton, ninth Duke of Hamilton; his daughter, Charlotte Seymour, wife of Edward Adolphus Seymour, eleventh Duke of Somerset; sold Christie's London, June 28, 1890, lot  (per note verso and Robert Simon pg. 280); Carlo Bianchini, Orvieto, Italy, 2012; The Estate of Dr. J. Clayton Davie and Family

Note: A 1982 doctoral dissertation by Robert Simon titled, Bonzino's Portraits of Cosimo I De Medici, includes this portrait. He concludes that this is a copy after an unlocated "seven button" autograph work by Bronzino  A technical analysis of the painting was performed by Gianluca Poldi in 2012 for the sellers, Carlo & Cesare Bianchini of Argos Arte. The report, in Italian, accompanies the lot. It was determined that the pigments date from the 16th century and are the same type used by Bronzino. The painting is therefore believed to be from Bronzino's workshop but not by the master's hand.

Literature: Robert Barry Simon. "Bronzino's Portraits of Cosimo I de' Medici." PhD diss., Columbia University, 1982, Chapter VII, pp. 151-282, No. B10.

Reference: E. Baccheschi, L’opera completa del Bronzino, Milan 1973

some buckling of paint and small losses on top edge, splits top of panel, craquelure, two evident periods of retouch, some pest damage; frame with repairs and wear commensurate with age