Armor Within A Portrait Of Francesco Maria Della Rovere

Francesco Maria Della Rovere was born in 1490 to Guidobaldo II della Rovere, Duke of Urbino, and Giovanna de Montefeltro; his uncle was also Pope Julius II, so he was royalty from the beginning. He was not granted Duke of Urbino until his uncle; Guidobaldo I of Urbino died, due to support from the Pope. In 1509, he was named commander-in-chief of the Papal States. Francesco spent most of his career in the Papal Service. His son, Francesco Maria II was the last Duke of Urbino from his bloodline. This portrait of Francesco Maria della Rovere was created between 1536 and 1538. It illustrates the use of armor within a portrait, not necessarily for battle but to portray his social status as a Duke. He is shown in beautiful, shining armor. He
Seeing a man portrayed in armor showed everyone his significance and stature. Francesco Maria, being a Duke and having huge influence in the military, wanted to be portrayed as the powerful figure he was seen as. The beautiful, rich setting of his portrait, gives off the message clearly that he is wealthy and of a high status. McCall, later on in his essay, discusses how renaissance bodies were not just flesh, but by the clothing or accessories they were dressed in, reflected the ideals of gender and class in that time. Armor meant more than just the physical idea of armor during the renaissance; it reflected the political, social, and economic power that the individual possessed. In regards to the image on the right, you can see that this portrait doesn’t quite give off the same sense of regality and stature that the portraits in armor do. Even though he is dressed nicely, just by looking at him he looks like a common man. This image doesn’t show any authority, wealth, or