Camilla Peretti, died 1591, Sister of Pope Sixtus V [obverse] 1590

This bronze medal of Camilla Peretti, sister of Pope Sixtus V, was made in Italy, likely around 1590 by Domenico Poggini. The portrait presents Peretti in profile, wearing a widow’s veil, with an inscription identifying her relationship to the Pope. The production of medals commemorating individuals, particularly those connected to the papacy, had become a common practice during the Renaissance, reflecting the cultural and political significance of powerful families. The Catholic Church, as a major institutional patron of the arts, used artistic production to assert its authority. The image of Camilla, as sister of the Pope, reinforces the social and familial structures that upheld the Church’s power. The inscription ‘M. SOROR’ meaning ‘Sister of the Greatest,’ is a bold statement about nepotism and gender. Art historians use a range of documentary sources to understand the social and political context surrounding artistic patronage. These include family trees, commissioned inventories of family wealth, and records of official ceremonies. Together, these sources help to reveal the complex ways in which art, family, and power were intertwined in Renaissance Italy.