Estêvão Gonçalves Neto

Estêvão Gonçalves Neto
Estêvão Gonçalves Neto
	Possible self-portrait as Joseph of Arimathea, in a detail from the Crucifixion (Missal of the Academy of Sciences, c. 1616-1622)
Died	29 July 1627; Viseu, Portugal
Nationality	Portuguese
Notable work	Missal of the Academy of Sciences
Patron(s)	João Manuel de Ataíde

Estêvão Gonçalves Neto (d. 29 July 1627) was a Portuguese priest who became a notable illuminator and miniature artist. His work has been compared to that of Federico Barocci and Taddeo Zuccari.^[1]

Early life

Little information is available about his early life and familial background. Historians speculate that he could be a descendant of Lord of Alba de Yeltes, who fled to Portugal to escape persecution by Isabella I of Castile due to his support of Joanna la Beltraneja's claim to the throne of Castile.^[2]

Career

He was chaplain to the Bishop of Viseu, João Manuel de Ataíde, who made him a canon of his cathedral on 8 October 1622, following the death of canon Cristóvão de Mesquita. From some of his miniatures signed "Abbas Sereiiensis", he seems to have been previously abbot of Cerejo [pt], in Pinhel, near Guarda (though some older authors erroneously interpret this as Serém,^[1] a place in Macinhata do Vouga, Águeda).

His masterpiece, a profusely illustrated Roman Pontifical made from 1616 to 1622 is part of the collection of the Lisbon Academy of Sciences. It is regarded as one of the best examples of Portuguese illumination.^[3]

References

^ ^a ^b Castro, Abade de (1867). "A Exposição Retrospectiva Portugueza em Paris" [The Portuguese Retrospective Exhibition in Paris]. Archivo Pittoresco (in Portuguese). X (9): 72. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
^ Gama, António Santos (2017). "Pinhel e os seus Ilustres durante o período Filipino (III): Estêvão Gonçalves Neto, Abade de Cerejo". Retrieved 13 November 2018.
^ "Pinhel celebra 400 anos do Missal Pontifical do abade de Cerejo" [Pinhel celebrates the 400th anniversary of the Pontifical Missal of the Abbot of Cerejo]. Diocese of Guarda (in Portuguese). 10 September 2018. Retrieved 13 November 2018.