Agostino Tassi

Who was Agostino Tassi?

Agostino Tassi was an Italian painter, mostly of landscapes and seascapes, who is now best known as the rapist of Artemisia Gentileschi.

Because he aspired to nobility he modified the details of his early life. Though he was born in Perugia he claimed to have been born in Rome. His family name was Buonamici, but Agostino adopted the surname Tassi to give substance to his story that he was adopted by the Marchese Tassi. He was actually the son of a furrier named Domenico.