Portrait of Francesco delle Opere – Galleria degli Uffizi – Florence
The painting has been part of the collection of Cardinal Leopoldo de’ Medici, and it was attributed to the hand of Raphael in the past; however, the critic Gaetano Milanesi, reading the inscription on the back of the panel, confirmed that it is an autograph work by Perugino. Besides, it was possibile to define the date of execution (1494) and the subject of the portrait: Francesco di Piero di Lorenzo delle Opere, a Florentine citizen living in San Giovanni district. He was born around 1451 from a family of weavers of expensive drapes and carvers of precious stones, which made “Opere” (“works”), hence the origin of the surname.
The character, well dressed, holds in his hand a cartouche bearing the motto “Timete Deum”, recurring theme of the sermons of Girolamo Savonarola in Florence; however, it is possible that Perugino has realized the portrait in Venice, where Francesco had moved and where the painter, in July 1494, went to arrange a fresco in the Council Room, in the Palazzo Ducale, which he never realized.
The painting is preserved at the Galleria degli Uffizi in Florence.
