Portrait of Francesco delle Opere [SEP] collection
Portrait of Francesco delle Opere
The Portrait of Francesco delle Opere is a painting by the Italian Renaissance artist Perugino, dating to 1494 and housed in the Uffizi Gallery, Florence.
History.
The first mention of the painting is in the inventory of Cardinal  Leopoldo de' Medici's artworks, as a work of "Second Manner Raphael". In the 19th century it was attributed to Perugino and  Jacopo Francia, and then again to Perugino by Antonio Ramirez de Montalvo, who discovered an inscription in the rear
. This reads: "1494 DI LVGLIO PIETRO PERVGINO PINSE FRANC[ESC]O DEL LOPRE PEYNAGA".
It was long considered a self-portrait, and from 1883 it was therefore exhibited in the gallery of self-portraits in the Vasarian Corridor. In 1881 the subject was finally identified as Francesco delle Opere (died 1516), a gem carver and a friend of Perugino.
Description.
Francesco delle Opere is portrayed from three-quarters, with a black beret and a mantle of the same color, a red blouse