Moroni, one of the greatest Italian portraitists of his day, created a lasting record of the principal families in Bergamo. His portraits of children are rare, but each conveys unusual tenderness and a sense of intimacy. Although this young girl is dressed in an elaborate brocaded dress and wears a thick string of pearls and other jewelry, our attention is mostly drawn to her delicate face and clear gray eyes. She was a member of the local Redetti family, and the painting passed from their home to Guglielmo Lochis’s collection, where it caught the eye of Charles Eastlake, the first director of the National Gallery, London.
