Wikimedia Commons · Public domain · Hover to magnify, click for fullscreen
Original file
About This Work
The Pope's hands rest upon an open Bible, identified as the 14th-century Hamilton Bible, while he holds a biconvex magnifying glass to study the text. To the left sits a highly decorative bell featuring complex chased patterns and a cardinal's hat tassel. The Pope wears a rich crimson velvet mozzetta trimmed with white ermine fur over a finely pleated white linen sleeve.
As the son of Lorenzo the Magnificent, Pope Leo X represents the peak of Medici patronage over the Neoplatonic and humanist scholarship of the Renaissance. The magnifying glass and focus on the Gospel of John reflect the era's intellectual shift toward philological scrutiny of sacred and ancient texts promoted by thinkers in the Medici circle.
Inscriptions(Latin)
In principio erat verbu[m] et verbu[m] erat