Francesco Maria II della Rovere

The painting was painted around 1572, after the return of Francesco Maria II from the company of Lepanto, and is inspired by the famous portrait executed by Titian for Francesco Maria I in 1536-38. The young duke poses by his father's will, having himself portrayed live only for the face (the study of the face can be traced in a small oil on a slate kept in the Uffizi) and to glimpse his left hand, while The Armor It will be completed by the artist in his studio. The creation of this painting constitutes the first of a long series of meetings between FM II and Barocci, whose art the duke would turn to until the painter's death (1612).