Back to Works of Art

Piero di Lorenzo de' Medici

Gherardo di Giovanni di Miniato (Gherardo di Giovanni del Fora)  (Italian, Florence 1445/46–1497 Florence)

Date:
1488
Medium:
Tempera on parchment
Dimensions:
13 x 8 1/4 in. (33 x 21 cm)
Classification:
Manuscripts & Illuminations
Credit Line:
Biblioteca Nazionale di Napoli [image credit: Courtesy of Italia-Ministero Beni Culturali, Biblioteca Nazionale di Napoli]
  • Gallery Label

    This miniature by an artist Leonardo da Vinci called a "sophisticated mind" shows the oldest son of Lorenzo the Magnificent. Unfortunately, Piero di Lorenzo did not have his father’s political gifts. His failed handling of the French invasion of Italy in 1494 led to his exile and the sacking of the Medici palace. The miniature decorates the first edition of Homer, printed in Florence in 1488 with a Greek font designed for the purpose. The Florentine historian Guicciardini commented on Piero’s "small mind," but here he appears as a promising youth.

110005930

Close