POLAND ~ Lady with an Ermine - Czartoryski Museum - Kraków ~

... Beautiful view of one of the greatest and most famous portraits in the history of art... it is in fact the central masterpiece of the Museum’s collection that captures the essence of Renaissance artistry.... the work is one of only four female portraits painted by Da Vinci... the painting is known for its naturalistic depiction of Cecilia and the ermine she cradles, which was the Sforza family's heraldic animal...  she was the favourite and most celebrated of the many mistresses of Ludovico Sforza, known as Duke of Milan, patron of Leonardo da Vinci... renowned not only for her beauty, but for her wit, her pursuit of the arts and scholarship...  Thanks a lot Gian Luca and Raffaella! (✿◠‿◠)

Leonardo da Vinci, Lady with an Ermine, 1489-1491, painted in oils on a panel of walnut wood.

The young woman in the portrait is Cecilia Gallerani (1473-1536). She came from a respectable background, even though she was not a member of the nobility. Her family was from Siena, where she was born sometime around 1473.

The painting was brought to Poland from Italy by Prince Czartoryski in 1798.  It was moved to Dresden for safekeeping during World War I and was looted by the Nazis during World War II before being returned to Poland.  The Polish government purchased the painting in 2016, and it is now displayed in the Czartoryski Museum.

 

Stamps:

The 150th Anniversary of the UPU 

(Issued 30-10-2024)
 

Jerzy Iwanow-Szajnowicz, 1911-1943

(Issued 25-03-2021)