Medal: Sultan Mehmed II
Costanzo da Ferrara Italian
Not on view
Costanzo da Ferrara was both a painter and a medalist who was primarily active in Naples. Costanzo was called to Istanbul to paint a portrait of the Sultan Mehmed II of Turkey (1430–1481) probably between 1475–1478 when diplomatic relations were restored following the Turkish attack on Negroponte. It is likely that Costanzo remained at the court until the Sultan's death in 1481, when this medal was produced. The reverse shows the subject on horseack. The work is a fine old aftercast of the 1481 version of Costanzo’s original medal of 1477– 80; it was possibly cast after a reworked and polished lead original. Note the unusual spelling of ETERETIE, which should be ET GRETIE.
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