CERL Thesaurus

Bernardo Dovizi (Bibbiena 1470 - Rome 1520) was a scholar and a diplomat, as well as a friend and the trusted private secretary to Pope Leo X. He is shown here in choir dress, consisting of a white rochet over a red soutane and a mozzetta in red watered silk, with a red biretta. His right arm is resting on the arm of his chair, while in the left he holds a letter with the words “Sanctissimo d[omi]no nostro Pap'¦” evidently addressed to the Pope. The slightly lowered gaze and the three-quarter pose amplifiy the pyramid composition and attract the gaze to the white sleeve in the foreground, with its fine pleats in light fabric, which contrasts with the thickness of the watered silk mozzetta. The most prominent part of the portrait is the shrewd expression and attentive gaze of the subject, which transmits his authority, his intellectual strength, but also his more human essence.