TINTORETTO
(b. 1518, Venezia, d. 1594, Venezia)

Portrait of Sebastiano Venier with a Page

c. 1580
Oil on canvas, 194 x 132 cm
Private collection

Sebastiano Venier (1496-1578), descendant of one of the old patrician families of Venice, was captain-general of the Venetian fleet at the naval Battle of Lepanto in 1571. This battle resulted in a decisive victory of the allied fleets of Spain, Venice and the Holy See over the Turkish forces. The Battle of Lepanto is illustrated in the background of the portrait. Another, half-figure portrait of Venier by Tintoretto is in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna.