Portrait of a Young Man (Botticelli, London)

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Portrait of a Young Man
Sandro Botticelli, c. 1483
Tempera on panel
112 × 157 cm
National Gallery, London

Portrait of a Young Man is a painting by the Italian Renaissance artist Sandro Botticelli, circa 1483. It is housed in the National Gallery of London.

In his later portraits Botticelli frequently dispensed with landscapes or interiors in the background, instead concentrating solely on the person being portrayed. One of his most beautiful portraits is that of the unknown young man wearing a red cap, the only known en face portrait by the artist. It is captivating due to the vivid and alert presence of the model, whose youthful informality the artist has succeeded in capturing masterfully.

Until the mid-19th century this portrait was attributed to Giorgione, Filippino Lippi or Masaccio. The identity of the sitter is unknown.

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