ABSTRACT
The mythologies for Ferrara indicate that Titian's fame had echoed well beyond the Venetian lagoon by the early 1520s. However, it was neither his mythologies nor his religious paintings that won him larger acclaim. Titian was catapulted to international fame and fortune after executing several full-length portraits of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. An identical portrait of the emperor, signed and dated 1532 by the German court artist Jacob Seisenegger, is often cited as the model for Titian's portrait of Charles V. A beautiful drawing of a helmet done in black and white chalk on blue paper has also been connected with the portrait of Francesco Maria. The Eleonora's sumptuous, expensive gown of gold and black with white collar and cuffs, which, along with her pearls and gold necklace, indicates both her social position and her wealth. Throughout his entire career, Titian's portraits of aristocratic women are frequently, but not exclusively, less absorbing than his portraits of men.
