Portrait of a Woman (Marianna Panciatichi, marchesa Paolucci delle Roncole, 1835–1919, or her sister-in-law, Beatrice Ferrari-Corbelli di Reggio, contessa di Lucciano)

Curatorial Overview

“Gordigiani was the premier portraitist of the Risorgimento, the period of modern Italian unification. This portrait, commissioned by marchese Ferdinando Panciatichi (1813–1897), scion of a distinguished Florentine family, depicts the patron’s daughter or daughter-in-law. That it was one of a pair—the pendant is now unlocated—can be deduced from the original receipt for the exuberant gilt wood frame with silk velvet elements the painting still bears, a masterpiece of the intagliatore, or carver, Niccola Ricci (active 1848–1866). The frame’s opulence is evocative of the years 1864–71, during which Florence served as King Vittorio Emanuele II’s temporary capitol.”