\paperw4260 \margr0\margl0 \plain \fs20 \f1 This painting used to be part of the original decoration of Isabella dÆEste GonzagaÆs\i Studiolo \i0 in the Ducal Palace of Mantua. T
he various female figures are allegorical personifications of Virtue: the woman at the center is Minerva, the one on the left embodies the Cardinal Virtues and the one on the right represents Astronomy. The picture is meant to be an allegory of the reign
of Isabella dÆEste, made benevolent by the guidance of the virtues and the highest of sciences, those of the heavens.