Costanzo da Ferrara

Costanzo da Ferrara (1450–1524) was an Italian painter and medalist, born in Ferrara, but working mainly in Naples.^[1]

Second medal of the sultan Mehmet II, with mention "Byzantii Imperatoris 1481", made by Costanzo da Ferrara (1450-1524).

Costanzo was asked to go to Constantinople, capital of the Ottoman Empire, to make a portrait of the sultan Mehmet II.^[1] Diplomatic relations were restored with the Ottoman Empire after the Ottoman offensive on Negroponte in 1470.^[1] At that point, the sultan asked for "uno pittore de quelli dal canto di qua" (a painter from over here).^[1] Ferdinand I of Naples (1423–1494), recognizing the Ottoman ruler, commissioned the work.^[2]

Costanzo da Ferrara probably resided in Istanbul during the period 1475 to 1478, and may have remained there until the death of the Sultan in 1481.^[1] Two medals were minted in the name of the Sultan, one with "Asie et Gretie imperator", the other with "Bizantii imperator".^[2][3]

Costanzo da Ferrara is also known to have been back in Naples in 1485, where he painted a portrait of Ferdinando d'Este.^[1] Some paintings attributed to Gentile Bellini in Constantinople, may actually have been made by Costanzo da Ferrara.^[1][4][5]

Gallery

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  The seated scribe, traditionally attributed to Gentile Bellini, may actually have been painted by Costanzo da Ferrara.^[5][4]
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  Reverse of the second Mehmet II medal by Costanzo da Ferrara
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  First medal of Mehmet II, by Costanzo da Ferrara, circa 1478.^[6]

References

1. "Costanzo da Ferrara". www.nga.gov. National Art Gallery.
2. Viallon, Marie (15 October 2011). "La lettre à Mehmet II ou le loup et l'agneau". Cahiers d'études italiennes (in French) (13): 129–139. doi:10.4000/cei.81. ISSN 1770-9571.
3. RABY, J. (1987). "Pride and Prejudice: Mehmed the Conqueror and the Italian Portrait Medal". Studies in the History of Art. 21: 171–194. ISSN 0091-7338. JSTOR 42620181.
4. "Whether the Venetian Gentile Bellini, a renowned portraitist sent to Istanbul in 1479, or Costanzo da Ferrara, a court artist at Naples who also sojourned at the Porte, the specificity of detail in the Seated Scribe leaves little doubt that the artist drew from life. Once the debate over attribution subsides, the more intriguing issue to raise is whether one can call the work a portrait." in Spinale, Susan (2003). "A Seated Scribe" in Eye of the beholder: masterpieces from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, in association with Beacon Press. p. 97. ISBN 9780807062494.
5. RABY, J. (1987). "Pride and Prejudice: Mehmed the Conqueror and the Italian Portrait Medal". Studies in the History of Art. 21: 176. ISSN 0091-7338. JSTOR 42620181.
6. NECİPOĞLU, GÜLRU (2012). "Visual Cosmopolitanism and Creative Translation: Artistic Conversations with Renaissance Italy in Mehmed Ii's Constantinople" (PDF). Muqarnas. 29: 32. doi:10.1163/22118993-90000183. ISSN 0732-2992. JSTOR 23350362.