It was one of his later works, and Lucrezia kept it till her
death. It is now in the room of portraits in the Uffizi, but much
blackened by time; probably also from the tile not having been properly
prepared. [Footnote: This portrait is given as a frontispiece.]
The next year or two were taken up in producing a number of large
altar-pieces, and in painting pictures for the dealer, Giovanni
Battista della Palla, who was still intent on supplying the King of
France with Italian works of art. For him he painted a _Sacrifice of
Abraham_, which Vasari thinks one of his most excellent works. The
face of the patriarch is full of faith, and yet self-sacrifice; the
nude figure of Isaac, bronzed in the parts which have been exposed to
the sun, most tenderly expresses a trembling dread, mingled with trust
in his father; the landscape is also very airy and beautiful, and a
characteristic group of a servant and the browsing ass is very
effective in the background.
He also painted a lovely picture of _Charity with three Children_
for Della Palla. Both these works were done with great care, for he
hoped by their means to regain the lost favour of the King of France.
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