| Portrait of Cardinal Niccolò Albergati. | |
| Subject: | Possibly Niccolò Albergati or Henry Beaufort |
| Medium: | Oil on canvas |
| Artist: | Jan van Eyck |
| Year: | c. 1431 |
| Height Metric: | 34 |
| Width Metric: | 27.5 |
| City: | Vienna |
| Museum: | Kunsthistorisches Museum |
The Portrait of Cardinal Niccolò Albergati is a painting by early Netherlandish painter Jan van Eyck, dating to around 1431 and now in the Kunsthistorisches Museum of Vienna, Austria. Niccolò Albergati was traditionally identified as the subject of the portrait, but modern scholarship suggests that Henry Beaufort is more likely to be its subject.[1] [2] If the portrait is of Henry Beaufort, it would be the earliest realistic portrait of an Englishman. Other scholars maintain it does not depict a cardinal at all.[3]
The cardinal is portrayed from three-quarters, as was usual in Flemish painting since as early as the 1430s. The dark background enhances the figure, who is lit by a bright light source. As is common in van Eyck's work, there is very close attention to detail, aided by his use of successive layers of colours diluted with oil, which allowed him deep effects of transparency and lucidity.
A preparatory drawing is now in the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen of Dresden, Germany.[4] Comparison with the drawing shows that van Eyck changed several details, such as the depth of the shoulders, the lower curve of the nose, the depth of the mouth and mainly the size of the ear.