Portrait of Simonetta Vespucci by Botticelli Postcard

Simonetta Cattaneo de Vespucci, nicknamed la bella Simonetta(ca. 1453 – April 26, 1476) was the Genoese wife of the Italian nobleman Marco Vespucci of Florence. She also is alleged to , have been the mistress of Giuliano de' Medici, Lorenzo the Magnificent's younger brother. She was renowned for being the greatest beauty of her age - certainly of the city of Florence. Countless poems and canvasses by many other painters were also created in her honor. She was only twenty-two at the time of her death. Above text from wikipedia. This painting is believed to be a posthumous portrait painted in her honor. Botticelli used her in a few of his paintings. It is believed by some that his Birth of Venus painting resembles her, because he had fallen in love with her. He requested to be buried at her feet, which when he died in 1510, he was.