Alfonso I of Aragon, King of Naples
c. 1541/43 | Fra Giovan Angelo Montorsoli
The significant coiffure and the prominently staged neckchain
of the Order of the Golden Fleece are the distinguishing features of this posthumously created portrait bust. The king was known to have
been wise and mild, yet also inclined to “a love of pomp and
lust”. In 1445, Alfonso I became the first foreign king to be
elected to the Order of the Golden Fleece of Burgundy. After
the capture of Constantinople by the Ottomans in 1453, Alfonso accommodated the Greek scholars who had been driven
from the city in his realm.
The significant coiffure and the prominently staged neckchain
of the Order of the Golden Fleece are the distinguishing features of this posthumously created portrait bust. The king was known to have
been wise and mild, yet also inclined to “a love of pomp and
lust”. In 1445, Alfonso I became the first foreign king to be
elected to the Order of the Golden Fleece of Burgundy. After
the capture of Constantinople by the Ottomans in 1453, Alfonso accommodated the Greek scholars who had been driven
from the city in his realm.
Attributed to:
Fra Giovan Angelo Montorsoli (1499 - 1563 Florenz) DNB
Time:
c. 1541/43
Object Name:
portrait head; bust
Culture:
Naples
Material/technology:
Marble
Copyright:
Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien, Kunstkammer
Invs.:
Kunstkammer, 5441
Provenance:
1875 Ambras Collection, III, 20, p.155; 1832 from auction art cabinet of Father Tobias in the monastery of St. Augustine (Suppl. Inv., p.82, No.6); 837 ex 1833