Bernardo Hay (Florence 1864 - Capri 1931; some say Naples 1934) was the son of the British artist Jane Benham Hay (1829-1904), a seminal figure in the Pre-Raphaelite movement in England; and the Italian artist Francesco Saverio Altamura(1822-1897), a seminal figure in the pre-impressionist Macchiaioli movement in Italy; and an important figure in the Garibaldi movement that led to the reunification of Italy.

The Hay name derives from Jane Benham's first marriage in London in 1851 to the British artist John Hay, a marriage which produced a son one year later. The marriage failed shortly thereafter, but she apparently retained the Hay name for the rest of her life. By 1854 she was living in Florence; and in the late 1850's s...