Portrait of Silvestro Aldobrandini

attributed to Ridolfo Ghirlandaio · c. 1550

Silvestro Aldobrandini (1499–1558) was a distinguished jurist who taught law at the University of Pisa and held public office in the city-state of Florence. In 1530, when the powerful Medici banking family regained control of Florence, Aldobrandini was exiled. He remained a politically involved lawyer and eventually was employed by the pope. He died in Rome in 1558. Ghirlandaio shows him dressed with severe elegance in black, holding a letter. The ring on his index finger clearly displays the Aldobrandini coat of arms.