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Allegory of Magnanimity

Creator

Italian Artist · 1634–1705

"The [Spanish] king showed him [Luca Giordano] a picture, expressing his concern that he had only one. Lucas painted another . . . exactly in [that] manner. . . . The king in return knighted him, gave him several palaces," reported a biographer. Giordano had two nicknames: Proteus, for his ability to imitate almost any artist's style, and *Luca fa presto* ("Luca go quickly"), probably derived from

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Date: about 1670
Medium: Oil on canvas
Culture: Italian
Department: Paintings
Institution: Getty Museum

Magnanimity, or greatness of soul, is the moral virtue of bearing adversity with tranquility and equanimity. This female personification wears an imperial crown and a gold brocade cloak lined with royal ermine to indicate the nobility of her disposition. Two flying putti proffer another crown and a scepter, the symbol of Magnanimity's power to execute her noble thoughts, while the lion at her feet alludes to her fearlessness. At left, a putto prepares to empty a cornucopia (horn of plenty), evoking her generosity and disregard for material rewards and personal advantage.

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