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The bust of Charles V (1500-1558) appears in profile in low relief, set in a richly sculpted frame. He wears the Golden Fleece and Sash. His armor represents Christ with the Cross, alluding to the consideration of Charles V as a "Christian Knight." In the frame, a male and female figure, both ending in inverted pyramidal pedestals, flank the bust. The upper part of the curved pediment is topped by an eagle, symbolizing the Empire, with two sphinxes and chimeras at the sides. The garlands and sheep's head over the cornice complete its typically Renaissance decoration.
Charles V commissioned Leoni to make this work and its pair, the image of Empress Isabella in 1549 and the artist based the Emperor's image on a medal he himself had made.
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