Cosimo I de' Medici, Duke of Florence

This portrait of Cosimo is one of the earliest sculptural portraits of the duke, probably the first done in antique style. The Duke’s antique regalia have ancient imperial associations.

An unusual feature of the bust, the separate carving of head and torso (which in turn is in three parts), is a known working method of Bandinelli. In fact, carving a bust in separate pieces was an ancient Roman practice, as Bandinelli would have known from examples he could study in Florence and Rome.