Oil on canvas, 126cm by 91.5cm.
The painting is a copy of one by Parmigianino which was previously in the collection of the King of Naples and is now in the Capodimonte Museum, the National Museum of Naples.
This copy is thought to have been acquired by Brownlow, 9th Earl of Exeter (1725-1793).
Parmigianino was active as a painter and printmaker in Florence, Rome, Bologna and his native Parma.
The identity of Antea remains something of a mystery; opinions differing as to whether she was his mistress, his daughter, or one of the most famous courtesans of the time; if she was, indeed, a real person!
