La Bella Mano

Date1875

Artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti (British Pre-Raphaelite painter, 1828–1882)

MediumOil on canvas

Dimensions62 × 46 in. (157.5 × 116.8 cm)
frame: 76 × 60 in. (193 × 152.4 cm)

Credit LineSamuel and Mary R. Bancroft Memorial, 1935

Object number1935-25

On View

On view

Collections

Pre-Raphaelites on View

ClassificationsPAINTING

Label TextAs poet and painter Rossetti often worked simultaneously on the same subject in both genres, each complimenting the other. The two stanzas which appear on the frame are in Italian, a language in which Rossetti was fluent from an early age.

As in many of Rossetti’s late works, the composition is lacking in narrative. Instead it is an image of the personification of love—a Venus assisted by her winged attendants. The canvas is rich in details all contributing to the theme of love—both spiritual and earthly—as represented in the central figure. An abundance of symbols reinforce the theme, including the scallop shell, recalling the sea-birth of Venus. The effect of a halo is created by the convex mirror hanging behind the main figure's head, and revealing the bedroom beyond, suggesting a more earthly passion.