Portret van Sigismondo Malatesta 1600 - 1604

Dominicus Custos created this engraving of Sigismondo Malatesta around the turn of the 17th century, and it exists now in the collection of the Rijksmuseum. Consider this image as a representation of power. Malatesta was a 15th-century Italian condottiero and nobleman, a figure known for both his military prowess and his controversial reputation. The inscription "Capit Ecclesiae Romanae et Arimini" indicates his role as captain of the Roman Church and of Rimini, connecting him to both religious and civic authority. Custos, working in the context of the late Renaissance, draws on classical portraiture, presenting Malatesta in profile, a common visual code to emulate ancient leaders. It's worth exploring how such portraits functioned within European aristocratic societies and how they used institutions like the church to consolidate power. To truly understand this image, we might investigate the historical context of the Malatesta family, the role of condottieri in Italian city-states, and the political dynamics of the Papal States.