The Badoer-Giustinian Portrait Busts: A Visual Ricordanza of a Noble Venetian Family

Abstract

Although portrait busts were common in Florence and Tuscany during the quattrocento, they did not become widespread in the Veneto until the second half of the sixteenth century. Three bronze busts constitute one of the first known examples of dynastic bust portraiture in the Venetian Renaissance. Dating to the middle of the cinquecento, they portray Procurator Girolamo Giustinian (1470–1532), his wife, the heiress Agnesina Badoer Giustinian (1472–1542), and one of their sons. The bust of Agnesina Badoer has long been recognized as one of the first known female portrait busts in the Venetian realm, but the implications of the family group have not been explored. The identity of the son remains obscure and the identity of the busts' patron continues to be a matter of speculation. This paper examines the portraits by exploring the familial and political connections of the Badoer-Giustinian clan, which included the Grimani family, another force of Venetian power and patronage. It further proposes the identity of the son, potential circles of patronage for the ensemble, and the trio's original arrangement. More broadly, the busts are considered as monuments to the power of wealth, lineage, and the importance of the extended family in sixteenth-century Venice.