The painting “Lady with an Ermine”, in which the master depicted Cecilia Gallerani, the beautiful and inaccessible favorite of Ludovico Sforza. Actually, it was thanks to the connection with the Duke of Milan that the girl became the heroine of the canvas.

Her hair is tied in a braid and hidden under a mesh made of expensive fabric and adorned with precious stones. The traditional hairstyle for that time was called coazzone. In the hands of the girl is an animal, for some reason called an ermine, although many art historians and zoologists assure that another animal is depicted in the picture – a marten or a white ferret. And then they give convincing arguments as to why Leonardo called the painting “Lady with an Ermine.”

For white fur, ermine was called a symbol of purity and purity. Perhaps Leonardo wanted to emphasize that Cecilia Gallerani is a chaste lady, despite her intimate relationship with the duke.

So what is known about the beautiful mistress of the Duke of Milan?

Cecilia was born and raised in the family of a respected man – her father was the ambassador of Milan in Florence and held several important positions in the court. But he died when Cecilia was only 7 years old. However, the girl received a good education at that time, studied literature and Latin, and wrote poetry. The brothers arranged the engagement of ten-year-old Cecilia with Giovanni Visconti, signing a lucrative contract. But after 4 years, it was broken due to non-compliance with the conditions on the part of the bride’s family.

A special clause in the document on the termination of the contract indicated that the bride remained undefiled. This moment is explained by the fact that the ruler of Milan, who did not want to share the favorite with anyone, had already paid attention to the smart and beautiful girl. Soon, Cecilia even gave birth to the duke’s son. But Ludovico was already officially married to Beatrice d’Este. Long before meeting the girl Gallerani, he was engaged to the daughter of the Duke of Ferrara and, despite the desire to postpone the marriage, was forced to marry.

Beatrice did not want to endure her husband’s mistress nearby and insisted on moving Cecilia and another house. Ludovico, of course, did not dare to argue with his wife and gave the favorite a manor a few minutes walk from the castle. The new owner did not have a chance to live in this house for a long time – she was exiled by the duke to the Saronno estate. And the Palazzo Carmagnola still stands in Milan. In 1947, the Picollo Theater settled in the estate, which is still operating. And a rare visitor knows that the famous lady with an ermine from the canvas of the great Leonardo once lived in this house.