SPINELLI, Niccolò di Forzore
(b. 1430, Firenze, d. 1514, Firenze)

Lorenzo de' Medici

c. 1490
Cast bronze, diameter 9 cm
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

In contrast to other rulers of his time, Lorenzo the Magnificent (1449-1492) did not commissioned a single portrait of himself. The present medal was likely commissioned by a Medici supporter or perhaps produced on the artist's own initiative. Compared to the telling likeness on the obverse, the allegorical depiction on the verso is distinctly inferior, but this is typical of many of Spinelli's works. The reverses of his medals generally present copies of antique coins or gems.




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