Sofonisba Anguissola - Portrait of Massimiliano Stampa

• Title: Portrait of Massimiliano Stampa
• Artist: Sofonisba Anguissola (1532-1625)
• Date: 1557
• Medium: Oil on canvas
• Dimensions: 135 × 71 cm

The painting is the "Portrait of Massimiliano Stampa", a young boy who was nine-year-old in 1557 when his father died and he inherited the title of marquis of the small northern Italian city of Soncino. The painting commemorated this inheritance of the title. The boy is dressed in black, probably not as a sign of mourning but simply because in the 1500s in Italy, black became fashionable as a symbol of power, luxury and elegance in Italian courts.

The composition is crafted to present the young Marquis in a mature light, adhering to customary aristocratic portrait conventions. It features a full-length depiction with a column backdrop, accompanied by a loyal dog, gloves, and a hand resting on his sword, all typical elements of aristocratic portraiture.