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Portrait of a Man, Possibly Girolamo Rosati
Also known as: Portrait of a Man; Portrait of a Nobleman
About the Artwork
The gesture of the elegantly dressed man is a mystery. Is he rising from his chair to address someone or is he pointing to something outside the frame? His right hand rests on a piece of paper (a letter?), while on the table are clover—a symbol of abundance, good fortune, and happy marriage—and jasmine, associated with purity and love, further emphasized by the roses on the trellis. There may have been a companion portrait of the sitter’s bride, to whom he acknowledges his devotion. Another recent interpretation identifies the sitter as Girolamo Rosati, a high official in Fermo, on Italy’s east coast. The paper may be a design for one of his important architectural projects, to which he may be pointing in the distance. The interrupted moment is a naturalistic touch characteristic of Lotto, quite distinct from the formality of the other Italian Renaissance portraits in the museum's collection. Though this portrait clearly articulates the man’s status, Lotto emphasizes his individuality and interiority as much as a socially constructed identity.
Inscriptions
Signed lower right: ".L. Lotus 15[...]"
Exhibition history
Mostra di Lorenzo Lotto. Palazzo Ducale, Venice, Venice, Italy (organizer) (June 14, 1953-October 18, 1954). The Venetian Tradition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (November 8, 1956-January 1, 1957). In Memoriam: Leonard C. Hanna, Jr.. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 4-April 7, 1958). The Renaissance Image of Man and the World. Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus, OH (organizer) (October 27-November 27, 1961). Art and Humanism in the Renaissance. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 23-February 25, 1962). Major Masters of the Renaissance, A Loan Exhibition of the Poses. The Rose Art Museum, Waltham, MA (organizer) (May 3-June 9, 1963). Style, Truth and the Portrait. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (October 1-November 19, 1963). Renaissance Venice and the North: Crosscurrents in the time of Bellini, Dürer, and Titian. Palazzo Grassi spa, 30124 Venice, Italy (organizer) (September 5, 1999-January 9, 2000). Lorenzo Lotto. Scuderie del Quirinale, Rome, Italy (organizer) (February 25-June 12, 2011). Lorenzo Lotto, Portraits. Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid, Spain (organizer) (June 18-September 30, 2018). Renaissance to Runway: The Enduring Italian Houses. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 9, 2025-February 1, 2026).
Quick Overview
- Artist
- Lorenzo Lotto (Italian, 1480–1556)
- Date
- 1533–34
- Medium
- oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- Framed: 135.9 x 128 x 8.6 cm (53 1/2 x 50 3/8 x 3 3/8 in.); Unframed: 108.2 x 100.5 cm (42 5/8 x 39 9/16 in.)
- Type
- Painting
- Classification
- Painting
- Department
- European Painting and Sculpture
- Credit line
- Gift of the Hanna Fund
- Accession no.
- 1950.250
Provenance
Imperial collection, Vienna; - 1923 Kunsthistorisches Museum (Vienna, Austria), sold to Moritz Lindemann, 1923; 1923 Moritz Lindemann (Vienna, Austria),sold to Wilhelm von Ofenheim, 1923; 1923 - 1930 Wilhelm von Ofenheim, 1860-1930 (Vienna, Austria), upon his death, held in trust by his heirs, 1930; 1930 - 1939 Von Ofenheim family trust, sold to Rosenberg and Stiebel, 1939; [Rosenberg & Stiebel, New York], sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art, 1950.
More by Lorenzo Lotto in museum collections
Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 7, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.
Open-access museum record · AT-00000244
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