THE foundations of the art of Verona were laid in Paduan soil by altichieri, who initiated the school of Verona. Veronese art early found expression in the naive pictorial and mediÆval style practised by the medallist-painter Antonio Pisanello (1397–1455), whose name appears to have been an endearing diminutive. He was a follower, if not a pupil, of Altichieri. The frequency with which he signed himself “pictor” on his medals leads one to suppose that he looked upon himself as a painter first and foremost, and contemporary records seem to confirm this. His art was so highly reputed in Northern Italy that the Venetians thought it advisable to invite him to Venice in 1421 to assist Gentile da Fabriano in painting frescoes, now destroyed, in the Doge’s Palace.

Jacopo Bellini also worked at Verona. He is known to have painted a picture of the Crucifixion for the Chapel of S. NiccolÒ in the Cathedral at Verona in 1436, but, after exercising considerable influence on the art of Northern Italy, it was in 1759 hewn down by a Canon with a view to beautifying the chapel!

Unfortunately, there are only two frescoes from the hand of Pisanello at Verona, while no more than four authentic easel paintings by him are known to exist, two of them being in the National Gallery. He is known to have travelled extensively in Italy, and to have worked also at Mantua, Ferrara, and Rimini. The traditions of mediÆval chivalry and the pictorial parade of pomp and mundane realism which are reflected in his work show that his contemporaries were justified in the high esteem in which they held him.

Pisanello’s love of depicting birds and animals is shown in his two pictures in the National Gallery, but in the Portrait of a Princess of the Este Family (No. 1422a, or No. 1422 Bis) he is shown to have been a lover of flowers also. This small panel was formerly attributed to Piero dei Franceschi, the Umbrian artist. For many years it hung among the Drawings, being apparently considered unworthy of a place in its proper environment, among the Italian primitive paintings, where it is now hung. It was purchased in 1893 out of the Felix Bamberg collection. The lady is seen in profile to the left. Her hair is dressed according to the fashion of the period, the front hair being plucked out to render the forehead round and high, while the nape of her neck for the same reason is hairless. She wears a white dress with loose-falling red sleeves; a sprig of juniper (ginevra) is let into her dress just above the left shoulder. It has been assumed from this that we here have a Portrait of Ginevra d’Este. She was the daughter of NiccolÒ ii. d’Este by his second wife, the infamous and ill-treated Parisina Malatesta, who was decapitated in 1425. Ginevra (1419–1440) became the wife of Sigismondo Malatesta, Lord of Rimini, in 1433, and died three years later. The background is composed of pinks and columbines, among which fly four highly decorative butterflies. The embroidery on the left sleeve of the dress is patterned with the impresa of a crystal vase set round with pearls. It is interesting to note that Ginevra’s husband, Sigismondo, is probably the Donor in the Madonna and Child and a Kneeling Donor (No. 1159a or No. 1279) by Jacopo Bellini which hangs next to it on the left. The only other painted portrait by Pisanello known is the later, and larger, one of Leonello d’Este in the Bergamo Gallery.

Bono da Ferrara (fl. 1450–1461) was a pupil of Pisanello, and Oriolo (fl. 1450) was a follower of his; their pictures are extremely rare. The Louvre contains no picture by Liberale da Verona (1451–1536), a master who had many pupils, among whom may be included Girolamo dai Libri (1474–1556) and Francesco Caroto (1470–1546). The Madonna and Child and St. John the Baptist (No. 1318), which is officially catalogued under the name of Girolamo, has long been held to be by Caroto.

Domenico Brusasorci (“The Rat-burner”) (1494–1567) was the father of Felice Riccio and a pupil of Caroto. He has been claimed as the author of the Madonna and St. Martina (No. 1163), which passes in the Catalogue as being by the very late Roman painter Pietro Berretini da Cortona (1596–1669). Other versions of this composition, representing St. Martina triumphing over the Idols, are known. A large number of the prominent Veronese painters are unrepresented in this collection, but the influence of Liberale is frequently seen. The Council of Trent (No. 1586) may be assigned to Paolo Farinati, although it is regarded by the authorities as coming from the hand of Titian. By the time that Farinati died, art in Verona had passed into decline.

One of the most decorative painters in Italy in the sixteenth century was Paolo Veronese, who although a native of Verona spent the best years of his life in Venice. He is usually included among the artists of Venice.