COSTA, Lorenzo the Elder
(b. ca. 1460, Ferrara, d. 1535, Mantova)

Portrait of a Young Man

c. 1490
Tempera on wood, 50 x 38 cm
Staatliche Museen, Berlin

In its simplicity, this poorly preserved portrait follows the convention established by Antonello da Messina, but here the customary parapet has been omitted.

The authorship of the portrait was long disputed. Scholars proposed a number of artists belonging to different regional schools (Antonello da Messina, Alvise Vivarini, Domenico Ghirlandaio. Since the 1930s the attribution to Lorenzo Costa has been generally accepted.