Battista Lorenzi’s Statue of Painting on Michelangelo’s Tomb

Abstract

Together with Giorgio Vasari, Vincenzio Borghini, artistic adviser to the Medici, was responsible for the design of the tomb of Michelangelo in the Florentine church of Santa Croce. On November 4, 1564, Borghini informed Duke Cosimo I de’Medici of his and Vasari’s intention to decorate this tombwith statues representing Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture, respectively. The order in which Borghini listed these statues suggests that he and Vasari wished to give Painting the main position, which meant that she would be placed in the center of the monument,