Portrait Miniature Of Francesco Oliveri Del Castillo, Future Duke Of Aquaviva In Palermo

This masterfully executed miniature portrait of a child with a bird was created in 1797 by a representative of the Italian School of Miniaturists. It is framed in its period original gold frame.

Thanks to the ancient inscription in Italian on the back of the miniature, this is the portrait of Francesco Oliveri del Castillo as a child (Duchino), future Duke of Acquaviva of Palermo (Sicily).

Francesco Oliveri del Castillo is identified in 19th-century Sicilian historical sources as Duke of Acquaviva (a title often associated with a residence or noble branch present in Palermo).

Historical context: the name appears in documents relating to the period of the Sicilian Revolution.

Legal matters: An 1840 document mentions the commutation of Francesco Oliveri's prison sentence while in detention in Lipari for "sectarian affairs" (anti-Bourbon political activity).

The title "Duke of Acquaviva", referring to the Oliveri family, appears in lists of Sicilian nobility of the period.

Source: Palermo State Archives.

Inscription: a miniature features a partially illegible needlepoint signature on the lower right;
Ancient inscription on the reverse, in Italian, mentioning the model's name and the date 1797.

Technique: Gouache on ivory, painted in a circle, period (!) gold frame, two period convex glasses, on the front and back of the miniature.

Dimensions: Diameter without frame: 5.5 cm (2 1/8"), diameter with frame: 6 cm (2 3/8").


State of preservation: The miniature shows no alteration of its pictorial layer. There is some dust on the underglaze. The miniature itself, however, is in its original condition.