Portrait of a Woman

dell’Abate Niccolò
(Modena 1512 - Fontainebleau 1671)

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The regular and well-delineated features of the lady closely recall the models of Girolamo da Carpi and the intensity of Parmigianino’s portraits. Elegantly dressed and with her hair gathered in an exquisite net, the young woman has no jewelry except an earring with a pendant in pearl, which is an attribute of Mary symbolizing chastity, as are the small jasmine flowers in her décolletage.