Found at a flea market and purchased for a modest sum by an anonymous buyer, the seven-foot Allegory of Fortune was strapped to the roof of a car and brought to Christie's auction house in New York City. There, experts recognized it as an important, long-lost allegorical scene by the Ferrarese master Dosso Dossi.
Dosso is well known for engaging with complex allegorical subjects, which are rife with symbolism. While a single interpretation of the painting’s subject has not been settled upon, Dosso's message seems to be that prosperity in life is transitory and dependent on luck. The nude woman represents Fortune, or Lady Luck. She holds a cornucopia, flaunting the bounty that she could bring, but sits on a bubble to show that her favors are often fleeting and could vanish in an instant. The billowing drapery is a reminder that she is changeable like the wind. Her single shoe symbolizes her capacity to bestow not only fortune but also misfortune. The man on the left personifies Chance. He looks over at Fortune and holds up a stack of lottery tickets, which he is about to place inside a golden urn, an allusion to the civic lotteries that had just become popular in Italy. The tickets may also refer to the painting's probable patron, Isabella d'Este, Marchioness of Mantua (1474 – 1539). One of her emblems was a bundle of lots, denoting her personal experience of fluctuating fortune.
Our Cards are all printed on 100% cotton tree-free archival paper. All Cards include a recycled kraft envelope in a protective sleeve individually hand wrapped for you. Each card is printed one at a time and hand bound here in Lugano, Switzerland. We ship all over the world via SwissPost. Please allow 5-9 business days for us to make them and 5-7 business days for transit. Art Prints are printed on heavy matte finish German art paper using the finest Canon archival inks. Frame is black natural with a white mattboard and Acrylite glazing.
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Artwork in this collection is from The J. Paul Getty Museum. Reproduction rights are reserved by the copyright owner and used under license by Archivea GmbH.
