Pisanello is a painter of the early Italian Renaissance known for his brilliant frescoes, easel paintings, murals, portraits, and other sketches. He is said to have invented this important genre and is the most important commemorative portrait medallist of the first half of the fifteenth century. He worked for the Doge of Venice, the Pope at the Vatican, the courts of Verona, Ferrara, Mantua, Milan, Rimini, and the King of Naples. He was well established with the Gonzaga and Este families, an important connection for this artwork. The identification of the princess depicted is a huge mystery. There have been many interpretations about who she is, with pretty valid evidence; the identity still remains a mystery; however, I would like to mention the one that stood out to me most. Previously, the figure has been identified as Cecilia Gozaga or Margherita Gonzaga. According to George Francis Hill, director of the British Museum library, the princess depicted in the painting is Ginevre d’Este. Hill states that the girl has physical family traits (mouth, chin, and a most extraordinary bulging cranium) in common with the Este family. Importantly, she wears an Este impresa (emblem) on her sleeve and a sprig of juniper (ginepro in Italian) in her corsage, hiding a pun on her name, Ginevra. We see a similar iconography in Da Vinci’s painting of Ginevra Benci. Apart from the identification, as in for the physical attributes, her forehead is very high and shaved, one of the leading beauty trends of the era, her nose is an absolute straight line, and her neck is gracefully long. Traditionally, the butterflies around her represent the soul, transformation, and resurrection, which many art historians have felt may have been a posthumous portrait.
The painting is remarkable for its delicate details. The embroidered sleeve, ribbons, pearls, and rich fabric emphasize wealth and social status. At the same time, the dark floral background filled with butterflies and flowers gives the portrait a poetic, almost dreamlike atmosphere. The butterflies may symbolize transformation or the fleeting nature of youth and beauty.
