Portrait of Francesco Giamberti, Musician
about 1485, Piero di Cosimo
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Francesco Giamberti was an architect, as well as a musician in the employ of Cosimo de’ Medici. This portrait was commissioned after his death by his son Giuliano da Sangallo. It was intended to be a partner to an existing portrait of Guiliano, which is also on loan to the National Gallery.
The pairing are the only surviving certain portraits by the late 15th-century Florentine artist, Piero di Cosimo.
Francesco’s face is very probably based upon a death mask. Technical examination reveals that Piero repainted the striped fabric so that it appears to run continuously through both portraits.
Francesco’s identity as a musician is stressed by the inclusion of a sheet of music. Music and architecture were regarded as closely connected disciplines, since they both depended upon an understanding of harmony and mathematical proportion.
It appears that, by commemorating his father in this way, Giuliano was emphasising his own intellectual heritage and thus enhancing his status as an architect.
