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The Dominican father Girolamo Savonarola (1452-1498) was a polarizing figure in late fifteenth-century Florence. His moralising preaching spurred bonfires in 1497 and 1498 that destroyed cosmetics, playing cards, and portraits of beautiful women.
Savonarola's medallic portrait presents a sober member of the Dominican Order, whose habit and hooded cloak revel only the forelock of his tonsured hair. His profile is dominated by the large, aquiline nose and full lower lip. On the reverse of the medal, a right hand emerging from a cloud clutches a dagger pointed menacingly at the fortified city and tower below.
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