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Portrait of a Prelate, probably Angelo Giori

ca. 1620–23
Not on view
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.
The highly cultivated sitter was an intimate of the Barberini family and became a papal chamberlain and then a cardinal under Urban VIII (who served as pope from 1623 to 1644). He eventually owned works by Nicolas Poussin and Bernini as well as Valentin (Saint John the Baptist and Saint Jerome, both completed in 1629, are on view in the last gallery). Giori lost fingers on his right hand in a hunting accident, which Valentin’s art has restored as a matter of decorum. This painting is the earliest surviving portrait by Valentin and demonstrates his understanding of portraiture as characterization rather than a mere record of the sitter’s appearance.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Portrait of a Prelate, probably Angelo Giori
  • Artist: Valentin de Boulogne (French, Coulommiers-en-Brie 1591–1632 Rome)
  • Date: ca. 1620–23
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions: 50 3/8 × 37 in. (128 × 94 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: Private collection
  • Curatorial Department: European Paintings