CASSANA, Niccolò
(b. 1659, Venezia, d. 1714, London)

Portrait of Grand Prince Ferdinando de' Medici

1690s
Oil on canvas, 101 x 88 cm
Galleria Palatina (Palazzo Pitti), Florence

Ferdinando, Grand Prince of Tuscany (1663-1713) was the son of Cosimo III. A famous and sophisticated collector, perhaps the greatest in the history of the Medici family, he never became Grand Duke as he died ten years before his father. Cassana, a fine portraitist, was one of the artists at his service. He also acted as agent for Ferdinando in the acquisition of many paintings, often adapting the dimensions to fit the new frames designed for the decoration of rooms in the Pitti Palace.