Portrait of unknown man

This undated portrait of an unknown man in the Nationalmuseum, Stockholm, executed on ivory, represents an important technical aspect of Rosalba Carriera's practice. She is credited with pioneering the use of ivory as a support for portrait miniatures in the early eighteenth century, replacing the previously standard vellum. The smooth, luminous surface of ivory allowed pastels and miniature pigments to adhere differently, producing a translucent quality in the flesh tones that was widely admired and quickly imitated. The 1757 date suggests a very late work if accurate, since Carriera had lost her sight by around 1746 — the dating may reflect an acquisition date rather than a creation date, or the attribution may be to her workshop. The Stockholm Nationalmuseum assembled extensive Italian Rococo holdings through diplomatic and collecting networks maintained by Sweden's eighteenth-century elite, and this work fits within that pattern.

The ivory support's natural translucency allows light to pass through the applied pigment and reflect back from the surface, creating a luminosity impossible on paper or vellum. Thin applications of pastel or miniature colour on ivory exploit this property, giving flesh tones a glow that contributed greatly to Carriera's reputation for capturing the appearance of living skin.