The Medici: Portraits and Politics, 1512–1570

Title Card — Power struggles in 16th-century Italy were epic …

• Bronzino (1503–1572) and Workshop. Eleonora di Toledo and Francesco de’ Medici (detail), ca. 1550, Oil on panel. Museo Nazionale di Palazzo Reale, Pisa (1949 all. 7 n. 25) © Haltadefinizione® Image Bank, by permission of the Ministry of Cultural Activities and Heritage - Polo Museale della Toscana

Table of Contents — What makes a dynasty most?

• Giorgio Vasari. The Siege of Florence, 1530 (detail), 1558, Fresco, Palazzo Vecchio, Florence. © Musei Civici Fiorentini - Museo di Palazzo Vecchio

Chapter Introduction — Be bold

• Bronzino (1503–1572). Cosimo I de’ Medici in Armor (detail), ca. 1545, Oil on panel. Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, Art Gallery of New South Wales Foundation Purchase 1996 (78.1996). Art Gallery of New South Wales / HIP / Art Resource, NY

Flip Card Gallery

• Flip Card 1 — Respect your mother: Jacopo da Pontormo (1494–1556). Maria Salviati (detail), 1537–43, Oil on wood. Gallerie degli Uffizi, Florence (1890 no. 3565). Alinari / Art Resource, NY.
• Flip Card 2 — Be legendary: Bronzino (1503–1572). Cosimo I de’ Medici as Orpheus (detail), 1537–39, Oil on panel. Philadelphia Museum of Art, Gift of Mrs. John Wintersteen, 1950 (1950-86-1)
• Flip Card 3 — Cast yourself in bronze: Benvenuto Cellini (1500–1571). Cosimo I de’ Medici (detail), 1546–47, Bronze. Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Florence (358 B). Gabinetto Fotografico delle Gallerie degli Uffizi, su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il turismo. Photo by Francesco Del Vecchio
• Flip Card 4 — Honor your roots: Francesco Salviati (1510–1563). Giovanni delle Bande Nere (detail), ca. 1546–48, Oil on panel. Galleria Palatina, Gallerie degli Uffizi, Florence (1890 no. 5195). Scala/Ministero per i Beni e le Attività culturali / Art Resource, NY
• Flip Card 5 — Celebrate your wins: Pierino da Vinci (1530–1553). Cosimo I de’ Medici as Patron of Pisa (detail), 1550–52, Marble. Musei Vaticani, Vatican City (742). Photo © Governorate of the Vatican City State-Directorate of the Vatican Museums
• Flip Card 6 — Adulting: Bronzino (1503–1572). Cosimo I de’ Medici (Cosimo at the Age of Forty) (detail), 1560, Oil on panel. Alana Collection, Newark, Delaware.
• Flip Card 7 — A precious portrait: Domenico Compagni (mid-16th century–ca. 1586?). Cameo of Cosimo de’ Medici and Eleonora di Toledo (detail), ca. 1574, Agate, gold. Tesoro dei Granduchi, Gallerie degli Uffizi, Florence (Gemme 1911 n. 115). Gabinetto Fotografico delle Gallerie degli Uffizi

Hotspot Gallery

• Hotspot Image 1 — TFW you’re casually caught reading while also posing: Bronzino (1503–1572). Portrait of a Young Man with a Book, probably mid-1530s, Oil on panel. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, H. O. Havemeyer Collection, Bequest of Mrs. H. O. Havemeyer, 1929 (29.100.16)
• Hotspot Image 2 — And we’ll never be royals …: Bronzino (1503–1572). Portrait of a Woman (probably Cassandra Bandini), ca. 1550–55, Oil on panel. Galleria Sabauda, Turin (262). Scala / Art Resource, NY
• Hotspot Image 3 — Felt cute, might delete later: Jacopo da Pontormo (1494–1556). Portrait of a Halberdier (probably Francesco Guardi), ca. 1528–30, Oil, possibly mixed with tempera, on canvas, transferred from panel. The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles (89.PA.49) Digital image courtesy of the Getty's Open Content Program
• Hotspot Image 4 — #Currentmood: Opulence!: Bronzino (1503–1572). Portrait of a Woman with a Lapdog, ca. 1532–33, Oil on panel. Städel Museum, Frankfurt (1136). © Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main

Chapter Introduction — Leverage the community

• Jacopo da Pontormo (1494–1556). Portrait of Two Friends (detail), ca. 1523–24, Oil on panel. Fondazione Giorgio Cini, Galleria di Palazzo Cini, Venice (40025). Venezia, © Fondazione Giorgio Cini

Four Corners — Like all good influencers …

Landing Page and Interior Corners (clockwise, starting from top-left):

• Top-left Corner (Hype Man): Titian (ca. 1488–1576). Benedetto Varchi (detail), ca. 1540, Oil on canvas. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna (GG 91). KHM-Museumsverband
• Top-right Corner (Poet): Bronzino (1503–1572). Laura Battiferri (detail), ca. 1560, Oil on panel Museo di Palazzo Vecchio, Florence, Donazione Loeser (MCF-LOE 1933-17), Restored by Friends of Florence with a major gift from Ellie and Edgar Cullman Jr. © Musei Civici Fiorentini - Museo di Palazzo Vecchio
• Bottom-right Corner (Paragon): Attributed to Daniele da Volterra (1509–1566). Michelangelo Buonarroti (detail), ca. 1544, Oil on panel. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Gift of Clarence Dillon, 1977 (1977.384.1) © The Metropolitan Museum of Art, photographed by Juan Trujillo
• Bottom-left Corner (Partner): Bronzino (1503–1572). Eleonora di Toledo (detail), ca. 1539–40, Oil on panel, Národní Galerie, Prague (O 11971). Photo © National Gallery Prague 2020

Deep Dive Introduction — Get lit

• Header and essay images: Bronzino (1503–1572). Portrait of a Girl (Isabella de Reinosa?) (detail), ca. 1540–41, Oil on panel. Galleria delle Statue e delle Pitture, Gallerie degli Uffizi, Florence (1890 no. 770) Gabinetto Fotografico delle Gallerie degli Uffizi, su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il turismo. Photo by Francesco Del Vecchio
• End Card: Parmigianino (1503–1540). Emperor Charles V Receiving the World (detail), ca. 1530, Oil on canvas. Private Collection. Sotheby's, New York

Deep Dive Essay — Get Lit: Meet the poets

• Giorgio Vasari (1511–1574). Six Tuscan Poets, 1544, Oil on panel, Minneapolis Institute of Art, The William Hood Dunwoody Fund (71.24) Photo © Minneapolis Institute of Art

Quote: “Come, follow me, and let people talk.”
— Dante, Purgatorio, Canto V, XIII

Chapter Introduction — Think global, act local

• Parmigianino (1503–1540). Emperor Charles V Receiving the World (detail), ca. 1530, Oil on canvas. Private Collection. Sotheby's, New York

Four Corners — Even influencers need to think about … 

Landing Page: (eight images clockwise, starting from top-left):

• Giovanni Bandini (ca. 1540–1599). Cosimo I de’ Medici, ca. 1575, Marble, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Purchased with funds provided by Anna Bing Arnold (M.81.39). Digital Image © 2021 Museum Associates / LACMA. Licensed by Art Resource, NY
• Bronzino (1503–1572). A Young Woman and Her Little Boy (detail), ca. 1540–45, Oil on panel. The National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., Widener Collection (1942.9.6). Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
• Bronzino (1503–1572) and Workshop. Eleonora di Toledo and Francesco de’ Medici (detail), ca. 1550, Oil on panel. Museo Nazionale di Palazzo Reale, Pisa (1949 all. 7 n. 25) © Haltadefinizione® Image Bank, by permission of the Ministry of Cultural Activities and Heritage - Polo Museale della Toscana
• Composite image of four coins:
  • Pietro Paolo Galeotti (1510s–1584). Aqueduct and Neptune Fountain in Piazza della Signoria, Aqueduct and fountain: commissioned 1559, inaugurated 1565 (reverse), ca. 1567, Silver. Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Florence (6357) Gabinetto Fotografico delle Gallerie degli Uffizi, su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il turismo. Photo by Francesco Del Vecchio
  • Pietro Paolo Galeotti (1510s–1584). Door Between the Vestibule and the Reading Room of the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana Library: completed under Cosimo, 1549–68 (reverse), ca. 1567, Bronze. Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Florence (6367) Gabinetto Fotografico delle Gallerie degli Uffizi, su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il turismo. Photo by Francesco Del Vecchio
  • *obverse and reverse pictured* Pietro Paolo Galeotti (1510s–1584). Bust in Profile of Cosimo I de’ Medici (obverse); Column with Justice in Piazza Santa Trinita Column: erected 1565, completed 1581 (reverse), ca. 1567, Bronze. Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Florence (6366) Gabinetto Fotografico delle Gallerie degli Uffizi, su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il turismo. Photo by Francesco Del Vecchio
  • Pietro Paolo Galeotti (1510s–1584). Courtyard of the Uffizi, Courtyard: designed by Giorgio Vasari, 1560 (reverse), ca. 1567, Bronze. Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Florence (6360). Gabinetto Fotografico delle Gallerie degli Uffizi, su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il turismo. Photo by Francesco Del Vecchio
• Jacopo Zucchi (ca. 1540–1596). Design for the Catafalque of Grand Duke Cosimo I (detail), 1574, Pen and brown ink and wash, over black chalk, on paper, The Morgan Library and Museum, New York, Purchased as the gift of the Fellows (1965.5)
• Benedetto Varchi (1503–1565). Orazione funerale . . . nell’essequie di Michelagnolo Buonarroti in Firenze nella chiesa di San Lorenzo, 1564 (detail), Printed by Giunti, Florence. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (131.1M58 V42) © The Metropolitan Museum of Art, photographed by Anna-Marie Kellen
• Bronzino (1503–1572). Francesco de’ Medici (detail), ca. 1551, Oil on panel. Galleria delle Statue e delle Pitture, Gallerie degli Uffizi, Florence (1890 no. 1571).  Scala / Art Resource, NY
• Alessandro Allori (1535–1607). Francesco I de’ Medici (detail), ca. 1570, Oil on canvas. Museum Mayer van den Bergh, Antwerp (MMB.0199). Image: Michel Wuyts

Interior Corners (clockwise, starting from top-left):

• Top-left Corner (Emperor’s clothes): Giovanni Bandini (ca. 1540–1599), Cosimo I de’ Medici, ca. 1575, Marble, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Purchased with funds provided by Anna Bing Arnold (M.81.39). Digital Image © 2021 Museum Associates / LACMA. Licensed by Art Resource, NY
• Top-right Corner (Show me the money):
  • Pietro Paolo Galeotti (1510s–1584). Aqueduct and Neptune Fountain in Piazza della Signoria, Aqueduct and fountain: commissioned 1559, inaugurated 1565 (reverse), ca. 1567, Silver. Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Florence (6357) Gabinetto Fotografico delle Gallerie degli Uffizi, su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il turismo. Photo by Francesco Del Vecchio
  • Pietro Paolo Galeotti (1510s–1584). Door Between the Vestibule and the Reading Room of the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana Library: completed under Cosimo, 1549–68 (reverse), ca. 1567, Bronze. Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Florence (6367) Gabinetto Fotografico delle Gallerie degli Uffizi, su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il turismo. Photo by Francesco Del Vecchio
  • *obverse and reverse pictured* Pietro Paolo Galeotti (1510s–1584). Bust in Profile of Cosimo I de’ Medici (obverse); Column with Justice in Piazza Santa Trinita Column: erected 1565, completed 1581 (reverse), ca. 1567, Bronze. Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Florence (6366) Gabinetto Fotografico delle Gallerie degli Uffizi, su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il turismo. Photo by Francesco Del Vecchio
  • Pietro Paolo Galeotti (1510s–1584). Courtyard of the Uffizi, Courtyard: designed by Giorgio Vasari, 1560 (reverse), ca. 1567, Bronze. Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Florence (6360). Gabinetto Fotografico delle Gallerie degli Uffizi, su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il turismo. Photo by Francesco Del Vecchio
• Bottom-right Corner (Next gen): Alessandro Allori (1535–1607). Francesco I de’ Medici (detail), ca. 1570, Oil on canvas. Museum Mayer van den Bergh, Antwerp (MMB.0199). Image: Michel Wuyts
• Bottom-left Corner (Rest in power): Jacopo Zucchi (ca. 1540–1596). Design for the Catafalque of Grand Duke Cosimo I (detail), 1574, Pen and brown ink and wash, over black chalk, on paper, The Morgan Library and Museum, New York, Purchased as the gift of the Fellows (1965.5)

Quote: “… Any pleasure in the world is a brief dream.”
— Petrarch, Il Canzoniere, Sonnet XV

Deep Dive Introduction and Deep Dive Essay — So extra

• Header and essay images: Martino Rota (ca. 1520–1583). Florence Crowning Alessandro de’ Medici, Duke of Florence, and Cosimo I de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, after 1569, Engraving. Davison Art Center, Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, Gift of George W. Davison (BA Wesleyan 1892), 1943 (1943.D1.288). Open Access Image from the Davison Art Center, Wesleyan University, photography by M. Johnston
• End Card (composite image):
  • Giorgio Vasari. The Siege of Florence, 1530 (detail), 1558, Fresco, Palazzo Vecchio, Florence. © Musei Civici Fiorentini - Museo di Palazzo Vecchio
  • Photograph supplied by Markus / 500Px Plus / Getty Images

Quote: “How many emperors and how many princes have lived and died and no record of them remains, and they only sought to gain dominions and riches in order that their fame might be ever-lasting.”
— Leonardo da Vinci, Thoughts on Art and Life, /trans. Maurice Baring, (The Project Gutenberg EBook, September 4, 2009), Retrieved from https://www.gutenberg.org/files/29904/29904-h/29904-h.htm

Life is short, art is long

• Photograph supplied by Markus / 500Px Plus / Getty Images