Borso d'Este

Borso d’Este (1413-1471) was the ruler of Ferrara for more than two decades. He succeeded his more cultured and intellectual brother Leonello, in 1450. He was made duke of Modena and Reggio by Frederick III in 1452, and in 1471, four months before his death, he was installed as duke of Ferrara.

Borso was vain but his interest in portraiture was not merely an expression of vanity: he fully appreciated the usefulness of princely images in promoting his legitimacy and status. His portrait was included in the fresco cycles of his various residences, most memorably in the Palazzo Schifanoia, as well as on medals, coins, and in individual portraits.

After 1469, his half-brother, Baldassare d’Este, became Borso’s preferred portraitist. The present portrait by Baldassare shows Borso toward the end of his life, gray-haired and lowly but every bit the proud ruler.