Background
The son of the doorkeeper at the Este castle, Ercole later held the position of court artist for the Este family in Ferrara.
The son of the doorkeeper at the Este castle, Ercole later held the position of court artist for the Este family in Ferrara.
He was profiled in Vasari"s Le Vite delle più eccellenti pittori, scultori, ed architettori. According to Vasari:
Ercole had an extraordinary love of wine, and his frequent drunkenness did much to shorten his life, which he had enjoyed without any accident up to the age of forty, when he was smitten one day by apoplexy, which made an end of him in a short time. Paintings by Ercole are rare.
