Jacopo Pesaro, Bishop of Paphos, being presented by Pope Alexander VI to Saint Peter

Jacopo Pesaro, Bishop of Paphos, Being Presented by Pope Alexander VI to Saint Peter, painted around 1504 and held at the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Antwerp, is one of Titian’s earliest documented works. The painting commemorates Pesaro’s role as papal naval commander and his victory over the Ottoman fleet in 1502. The work shows the young Titian already capable of handling a complex multi-figure historical composition, though the influence of Giovanni Bellini is still visible. Titian would later paint Pesaro again in the great Pesaro Madonna for the Frari church, one of the masterpieces of Venetian Renaissance painting.

The composition reveals the young Titian still working in the Bellinesque tradition, with precise drawing and enamel-like surfaces, though the bold color relationships already hint at his future direction.

Now in the Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten, Antwerp, this early Titian was commissioned to celebrate Jacopo Pesaro's victory at the Battle of Santa Maura (1502). The painting has undergone significant restoration over the centuries. The canvas has been relined and cleaned, though the work's early date and complex history make precise assessment of original versus restored passages challenging.