Some artworks in the collections of the Uffizi Galleries and the Rome Ministry of Foreign Affairs have been identified as Jona Ostiglio’s creations. A Jewish painter from Florence in the 17th century who, with the exception of a few allusions, has been mostly forgotten in the history of Italian art for centuries.
With this attribution, Ostiglio is now compared to other well-known Italian artists, like Caravaggio. This is the outcome of an in-depth investigation by Piergabriele Mancuso, the Medici Archive Project’s director of the Jewish Studies programme.
Despite the paucity of historical evidence, Mancuso created a profile of Ostiglio, a previously unidentified pillar of the prestigious Medici Court. The artist, according to Uffizi, was born between 1620 and 1630 and passed away in 1695. Ostiglio, a self-taught artist, was admitted to Giorgio Vasari’s prestigious academy and remained its only known Jewish card-carrying member until the twentieth century.
The wealthiest Italian families in Florence were among Ostiglio’s patrons at a time when the city’s Jews had few opportunities to pursue careers outside of their community.
In preparation for an exhibition that will open the following year, Mancuso presented his research on Ostiglio on Wednesday at the Uffizi Galleries.
In a statement, Mancuso said that while conducting research, he came into contact with curator Maria Sframeli of the Uffizi Gallery, who “uncovered several paintings and documents that point to the activities of the Jewish painter Jona Ostiglio in 17th-century Florence.” According to the galleries, historical records list four still life paintings by “Jona – Jew” in an inventory of artworks at a Medici estate from 1860. A 1907 report by rabbi and scholar Umberto Cassuto also briefly mentions Ostiglio.
Mancuso told the New York Times, “The idea we have is of a Jew that is different, quite accustomed to the Christian environment, and unafraid to distance himself from rabbinical laws that would have him behave in a more orthodox manner. His actions were inconsistent with Jewish and Christian society.”
