Profile of a Barbary Pirate
by VECCHIA, Pietro della, Oil on canvas, 83 x 65 cm
The sitter in this painting has been traditionally identified as Barbarossa, bey of Algiers. The Barbarossa brothers, Aruj and Khair-ed-din, were Barbary pirates who led a fleet against the Spanish navy to recapture the Barbary Coast. This canvas likely depicts the younger brother, Khair-ed-din.