(Antwerp 1597–1681 Florence)
Portrait of Vittoria della Rovere (1622–1694), Grand Duchess of Tuscany, bust-length,
oil on panel, 45 x 33 cm, framed

Provenance:
art market, Italy;
where acquired by the present owner

We are grateful to Lisa Goldenberg Stoppato for endorsing the attribution of the present painting on the basis of a photograph.

The present portrait is a recent addition to the oeuvre of the Flemish painter Giusto Suttermans (Joos Soetermans), who trained with Willem de Vos in Antwerp and subsequently with Frans Pourbus the Younger in Paris. In 1620 Suttermans moved to Florence at the behest of the Medici, and from that time on, he was active as the portraitist of the reigning family and for other members of the Florentine court. The artist was especially devoted to Vittoria della Rovere, who is represented in the present portrait, and she commissioned numerous paintings from him to furnish her favourite residences, including the Villa del Poggio Imperiale.

Vittoria della Rovere (1622–1694) was the last descendent of the dynasty of the Dukes of Urbino. In 1634 she married her cousin Ferdinando II de’ Medici, becoming the Grand Duchess of Tuscany. She is considered to have been a refined patron who was attentive to the arts with a deep knowledge of humanist culture. In 1654 she founded a literary academy for women in Siena and she also supported poets, musicians and scholars.