Self Portrait

This detail from Botticelli's Massacre of the Innocents is believed to be a self portrait of the great man himself

The inclusion of a self portrait within a larger composition was most famously delivered by Diego Velazquez in his masterpiece, Las Meninas. Many believe that Botticelli had done much the same thing in his 1476 painting, Adoration of the Magi.

As with much of Botticelli's career, this has never been confirmed completely but the general concensus of present day art historians is that in all probability it is likely to be him.

Self portraits have always offered us interesting insights into the mind of an artist, as well as sometimes indicating changes in their character over time. Artist's use of self portraits varies from one to the next, with Frida Kahlo most famous for frequently revisiting this method of inspiration.

Another expressionist artist in Vincent van Gogh would also give us a glimpse of his creative but complicated mind through a series of self portraits from right across his career. Further more, Da Vinci's red chalk sketch and Rembrandt's large oil painting are amongst their most famous.

The original painting remains on display at the Uffizi in Botticelli's home city of Florence. This famous art institution continues to have one of the finest collections of Renaissance art in the world, with a particularly impressive focus on the likes of Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael and Sandro Botticelli.

Snadro Botticelli was commissioned for this artwork by Italian banker Gaspare di Zanobi del Lama and he was to depict many of the Medici family within it. It is not known whether the inclusion of the Medicis was a request from the customer or an artistic decision, as neither is the choice of sneaking himself in the painting.