Passion for Perfection: The Straus Collection of Renaissance Art

The Straus family with works of art that would later be included in the gift to the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.

The anonymous Florentine painter of this signature work—Master of the Straus Madonna—was named after the Straus Collection by Richard Offner, a renowned scholar of early Italian art and a close adviser to Percy Straus.

In a wonderful state of preservation and acknowledged as the artist's masterpiece, this Virgin and Child is distinguished for the superb patterning of the gold ground, striking combination of rich colors, and overall lyrical expression. The modeling of the figures demonstrates an awareness of early Renaissance developments in painting the human figure as a volume in space.

The magnificent frame is largely original. The inner colonnettes, however, may be later additions.

Fra Angelico (c. 1395–1455), one of the greatest masters of the Florentine Renaissance, took up Holy Orders in the Dominican convent in Fiesole, outside Florence, sometime between 1417 and 1425. So famous and beloved were his paintings that he became known as Beato Angelico (the “Blessed Angelico”).

This small work, probably part of a larger altarpiece, depicts an episode from the life of Saint Anthony Abbot (c. 251–356), who is regarded as the founder of monasticism. Anthony, a hermit, was troubled by vivid hallucinations, such as the devil tempting him with luxuries like the huge mass of gold depicted here.

This painting depicts the Old Testament encounter between Solomon and the Queen of Sheba (I Kings 10:1–13). She traveled with a large retinue and a rich tribute of spices, gold, and precious stones to test the wisdom of the Israelite king.


The work was originally used as a ceremonial salver (serving tray), commissioned to commemorate a birth. The practice of giving such paintings as gifts was common in the humanist courts of Italy during the 15th century.

This exquisite narrative panel, probably part of a more-extensive wall decoration for a bedchamber or study, was painted by Bernardino Fungai (1460–1516). Documentation shows that in 1482 Fungai—a native of Siena—was a pupil of Benvenuto di Giovanni, with whom Fungai worked on frescoes for the cathedral of Siena.

The story depicted here may be based on an obscure myth that recounts the sacrifice and rescue of the woman beloved by Enalus, a figure associated with the cult of Poseidon or Neptune, whose youthful representation is central to the panel.

The fluid waves of this young woman’s blond hair, and the sinuous coil of her translucent head scarf, call to mind the work of Sandro Botticelli (1445–1510), one of the most beloved Renaissance masters.


In this painting, Botticelli's talented follower, Raffaellino del Garbo (c. 1466–1524), renders the sitter in a profile view typical of early Renaissance portraiture. By sensitively capturing the play of light and shadow over her eyes and mouth, the artist gives them a sensuous beauty. Although her garments identify her as a wealthy Florentine, her name remains a mystery.

Bartolomeo Veneto (active by 1502–died 1531) specialized in half-length portraits of young men dressed in the fashion of the day. Seen in front of a vivid red curtain, this anonymous sitter wears a brilliantly white shirt that contrasts with the expensive, fur-trimmed black coat.

The knob of the dagger in his left hand echoes the gold in the trim of the jacket. The hat badge depicting a winged ox, the symbol of Saint Luke, may refer to the young man's name, or to his affiliation with a particular association or group.

In this close-up, you can see in detail the tender motion of the Christ Child pressing his cheek to his mother's. Note how her cheek is pushed down at the edge of her lips.

This tour-de-force print is the largest engraving that Albrecht Dürer (1471–1528) ever produced and is superb in its craftsmanship, richness of detail, and poetic treatment of nature. The work depicts the legendary Roman general Placidus. While on a hunt, the pagan general encountered a stag with an image between its antlers of Christ on the cross. Placidus fell off his horse and was inspired to convert to Christianity, adopting the name Saint Eustace.

Hans Memling (1430/40–1494) painted this portrait in oil, a technique that had only recently been developed. Binding pigments with oil—usually linseed oil—allowed for a much more subtle blending of colors. It also allowed the artist to use thinner layers than had been possible in the older tempera technique, where egg yolk and water act as emollients. This new development enabled painters to depict the natural world in much greater detail and with a heightened sense of naturalism.

Antico, famous for his sensitive interpretation of antique statuary, shows Hercules resting on his club after the moment of victory. In "Hercules resting after the Battle with the Nemean Lion" the hero's idealized nude body with its elegantly elongated legs stands with crossed feet over the dead lion, whose mane is rendered in marvelous detail. Note how the lion’s head overlaps the frame at right, adding a sense of three-dimensionality to the plaque.

This idealized head of a young boy is identified as John the Baptist by the fringed shirt he wears, alluding to the saint's later life in the desert.

Satyrs are mythological creatures—half goat, half man—and renowned for their crude behavior. This satyr, with his hands bound behind his back, is seated on a pedestal ornamented with a sphinxlike creature.