Cosimo de' Medici (1519–1574), Duke of Florence and Grand Duke of Tuscany

Grand-ducal workshops, Florence

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 536

Son of the condottiere Giovanni delle Bande Nere, Cosimo came to power in 1537 after the assassination of his kinsman Alessandro de' Medici. The Florentine aristocracy underestimated him, but he succeeded in extinguishing all hope of Republican governance, permanently restoring Medici power over Florence and then Tuscany.

Cosimo presented himself as both a military figure and a patron of the arts. In this cameo, his profile recalls Imperial Roman portraiture. It is carved in lapis lazuli, a precious but brittle blue stone from Afghanistan, demonstrating the renowned expertise of the Florentine grand-ducal workshops in cutting and carving hardstones.

Cosimo de' Medici (1519–1574), Duke of Florence and Grand Duke of Tuscany, Grand-ducal workshops, Florence, Lapis lazuli, Italian, Florence

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