Lot Essay
Part of a fascinating series of decorative portrait roundels showing members of the Orsini family, of which ten are known through a series of photographs (Turner, op. cit.). Those which are still known in the original include portraits of Ferrante and Francesco Orsino at the Courtauld Institute (inv. D.1984.AB.28 and D.1965.XX.3), a portrait of Napoleone Orsini at the Getty Museum (inv. 93.GA.64) and a portrait of Orso Orsini sold at Christie's, Paris, 22 March 2007, lot 6. The series seems to have been executed as part of Cassiano dal Pozzo's Museo Cartaceo, many of whose sheets are now in the Royal Library at Windsor Castle.