The imposing portrait depicts Vincenzo Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua, in a majestic and seraphic pose, reflecting the power and grandeur of the subject. The Duke is depicted standing, with a regal posture and proud bearing. He is dressed in a rich gorget and wears burnished armor. Around his neck he wears the collar of the Redeemer, an honor created by the duke himself in 1608. Behind him is a red curtain, a typical element of Pourbus' portraiture which adds theatricality to the scene. Vincenzo I Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua and Monferrato, was born in 1562 in Mantua, Italy, to Guglielmo Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua, and Eleonora of Austria, daughter of Emperor Ferdinand I. Vincenzo Gonzaga was a patron of the arts and letters and an avid art collector, assembling one of the most important art collections of his time. His reign is remembered as a period of cultural splendor for Mantua, during which the city prospered and became a renowned center for art, culture and diplomacy.
