Diligence, c.1530 (oil on canvas)

The virtue of 'Diligence' is here embodied by a full-length female figure, facing slightly to the right. She is holding a wreath in her left hand and has her right arm resting on a book. She wears a long olive-brown dress with a billowing wine red robe over her left shoulder, leaving her right breast exposed. She is surrounded by many artefacts, including a statue in a niche; a table bearing an hour glass, writing materials, and a stauette; a terracotta pot with flowers (columbine and lily-of-the-valley); a helmet; an antique head; a palette and three brushes; a pipe; bound music (?); a viola, and two books. The painting probably originally belonged to a wider decorative scheme consisting of other allegories; a number of companion canvases have been suggested. ‘Diligence’ is clearly related to another painting in the Royal Collection, ‘Fame’ (RCIN 402942), acquired at the same time by Cardinal Francesco Barberini. Despite their shared scale and provenance, the works are clearly by different artists, with the artist of ‘Diligence’ seeming to be younger and more naive.