‘On account of high merits’: The portrait medals of Isabella d’Este and the image of the female collector

Isabella d’Este was among the most prominent female collectors in early modern Italy. While her collection of art and antiquities was quite large and diverse, this thesis focuses on a particularly unique object—her opulently embellished personal portrait medal. This gold and diamond encrusted medal was kept in Isabella’s private studiolo; however, there was also a base medal version which was mass produced and widely circulated. This paper examines the ways Isabella d’Este negotiated her anomalous position as a woman patron and collector within the courtly practices of Humanism. In particular, the discussion focuses on the ways in which the portrait medals functioned as a means of identity construction within both the private, elite space of her studiolo and wider realm of public exchange and discourse. The dual functions and meanings of these medals enable us to see how Isabella constructed her identity as a collector, an intellectual, a public figure, and a courtly woman of “high merit.”

Name thesis:degree_name

M.A.

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Art History

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2021

Author dc:creator

• Hall, Sierra

Contributors dc:contributor

• Rosenthal, Lisa

• Isabella d'Este
• portrait medals
• early modern Italy
• Renaissance
• women's collecting
• women's patronage
• studiolo

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2021 Sierra Hall

Language dc:language

en

Handle dc:identifier

http://hdl.handle.net/2142/110528

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/110528