Temperance

Seven paintings of the same size, representing the seven virtues, were commissioned from Piero del Pollaiuola in 1469 as the backs for chairs in the Audience Chamber in the Tribunale di Mercanzia in Piazza della Signoria, Florence. Six of these - representing Charity, Faith, Hope, Justice, Prudence and Temperance - were executed by Piero, while the seventh - Fortitude - was painted by the young Botticelli. The cycle was completed in 1472.

The Tribunale di Mercanzia was the body that decided on the business disputes between Florentine merchants and administered justice among the guilds, known as the Arts. In the 18th century, the wealth and heritage of this judiciary went to the Chamber of Commerce, including the seven paintings of the Virtues, taken to the Uffizi Galleries in 1777.

Temperance, considered as the capacity for moderation and the right measure, is shown here as a young woman in the process of mixing hot and cold water, pouring it from a ewer to a basin. According to Christian doctrine, she is one of the four cardinal Virtues, together with Fortitude, Justice and Prudence.

This panel, together with Faith, was painted before summer of 1470, partly fulfilling the contract that obliged the painter to provide two panels with the Virtues every three months, starting from 1 January 1470, for a payment of 20 florins for each one.

The careful depiction of the jug and metal basin, decorated with precious stones, reflects Piero's familiarity with goldsmithing, practised by his older brother, Antonio, at extremely high levels.