The Bentivoglio Altarpiece is a painting by the Italian

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 Renaissance painter Lorenzo Costa the Elder, dating to August 1488. It is displayed in the Bentivoglio Chapel of the church of San Giacomo Maggiore

San Giacomo Maggiore

San Giacomo Maggiore is a church in Bologna, central Italy. It was founded by the Augustinian Order in 1267 and houses, among the rest, the Bentivoglio Chapel, featuring numerous Renaissance artworks.-History:...

, Bologna

Bologna

Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...

, Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

.

It was commissioned by Giovanni II Bentivoglio

Giovanni II Bentivoglio

Giovanni II Bentivoglio was an Italian nobleman who ruled as tyrant of Bologna from 1463 until 1506. He had no formal position, but held power as the city's "first citizen." The Bentivoglio family ruled over Bologna from 1443, and repeatedly attempted to consolidate their hold of the Signoria of...

, lord of Bologna, as a thanksgiving for the family’s escape from an attempted massacre by the Malvezzi family http://www.footprintguides.com/Bologna/Northeast-the-university-quarter.php.

Description

The painting is a large canvas, executed by Costa together with other two works on the chapel's walls, the Triumph of Fame and the Triumph of Death. It features, above a sumptuous Renaissance architecture, a marble altar with a rich frieze; at the top of is a throne on which the Madonna and Child sit. At the sides, kneeling, are the two donor husband and wife, Giovanni II Bentivoglio

Giovanni II Bentivoglio

Giovanni II Bentivoglio was an Italian nobleman who ruled as tyrant of Bologna from 1463 until 1506. He had no formal position, but held power as the city's "first citizen." The Bentivoglio family ruled over Bologna from 1443, and repeatedly attempted to consolidate their hold of the Signoria of...

 and Ginevra Sforza. In the foreground, at the feet of the throne, are their eleven children. On the left are the daughters (from left, Camilla, Bianca, Francesca, Violante - future spouse of Pandolfo IV Malatesta

Pandolfo IV Malatesta

Pandolfo IV Malatesta, nicknamed Pandolfaccio was an Italian condottiero and lord of Rimini and other cities in Romagna. He was a member of the House of Malatesta and a minor player in the Italian Wars....

, Laura, Isotta and Eleonora); on the right the four children (Ermes

Ermes Bentivoglio

thumb|230px|Ermes Bentivoglio.Ermes Bentivoglio was an Italian condottiero, the son of Giovanni II Bentivoglio, lord of Bologna, and Ginevra Sforza, daughter of Alessandro Sforza, lord of Pesaro.-Biography:...

, Alessandro, Anton Galeazzo and the elder one, Annibale

Annibale II Bentivoglio

Annibale II Bentivoglio was an Italian condottiero, who was shortly lord of Bologna in 1511–1512. He was the last member of his family to hold power in the city. He was the son of Giovanni II Bentivoglio....

).