n. 0 / Gennaio 2012

Giorgio Vasari's Portrait of Lorenzo
The Magnificent: A Ciceronian Symbol of Virtue and a Machiavellian Princely Conceit

Liana De Girolami Cheney
Professor of Art History, Chairperson Department of Cultural Studies, University of Massachusetts Lowel

« indietro

In the painting, Vasari conveys how Lorenzo prudently listens to the suggestions offered by a beautiful mask crowned with laurel, which pours water from a spout through a mast into a vase. A Latin inscription in the mast,«Praemium virtutis» («Virtue rewards» or «Honor is the Reward of Virtue»), is Ciceronian42. In the painting, the motto al- ludes to how Lorenzo is recognized by his compatriots and the country for his political triumphs. This scene contrasts with the other objects next to Lorenzo, an ancient vase with a Latin inscription, «Virtus omnium vas» or «Virtus omnium veritas» («Virtue conquers all things or Truth conquers all things») or «Virtutum omnim vas» («The vessel of all virtues»)43. This motto further emphasizes Lorenzo's virtues of courage and fortitude exercised in moments of political treachery. These Latin inscriptions allude to Lorenzo's ability to triumph over slander and calumny with truth, courage and pru-dence. Vices such as slander and calumny tend to camouflage or conceal their intent. A mask covers their deceit and shields their weakness44.

The vessel with the last inscription, «Virtus ommium vas», stands over the head of another ugly mask of a severed head, representing another immoral conduct, which Vasari calls this personification Vice (Vizio). The ugly severed head, recalling the bi-blical tale of David and Goliath, lays above a marble base with the Latin inscription, «Vitia virtuti subjacent» («Life supports virtue» or «Vices are dominated by Virtue»), alluding to the triumph of virtue over vice. All these Latin inscriptions pay homage to Lorenzo The Magnificent prudent actions in diplomacy and governance during his controversial political reign. Furthermore, the motto and the image suggest that Lorenzo The Magnificent not only acts prudently but also with temperance. The pouring water from the vase is associated with the personification of Temperance, a cardinal virtue that Lorenzo The Magnificent pursues in order to be a just and a successful ruler.

In Vasari's painting, the masks are of different types. Four masks are depicted, but only one is beautiful, alluding to a virtue, such as Veritas (Truth). The others are ugly and unveil the vices of treachery, deceit and falsehood. At once, masks reveal and con-ceal the truth. In depicting these masks, Vasari is inspired by Renaissance paintings and drawings depicting treachery, such as the Calumny of Apelles45 in the works of Botticelli's Calumny of Apelles of 1495 at the Uffizi (Fig. 17), and Andrea Mantegna's Calumny of Apelles, 1490s drawing at the British Museum46. The Renaissance sub-ject is inspired by Lucian's essay on Slander (Calumny). The ancient essay analyzes a famous painting by Apelles of Kos' Calumny, painted in the fourth century BCE. Apelles depicts this scene after a dramatic personal controversy. A corrupt artistic rival Antiphilos accuses him of conspiracy in front of Ptolemy I Soter, a weak King of Egypt. After the judicial trial and prove of innocence, Apelles revenges himself by composing a painting depicting a gullible ruler listening to vicious and corrupt individuals who seek malice and falsehood. Renaissance painters familiar with the subject depicted how vice of fraud (slander) alludes to the damaging of a good name of another by imputing to him a fault of which the person is not guilty. In the painting of the Portrait ofLoren-zo The Magnificent, Vasari addresses to this subject of slander and indicates how Lo-renzo's temperate and prudent political know how prevents him from following into a trap of deceit and recklessness, in particular, after the Pazzi's conspiracy and papal political scheme against the Medici family47.

Fig.17. Botticelli, Calumny of Apelles, 1495 (Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence)

As a prudent ruler and a mythical symbol of Prudence, Lorenzo The Magnificent must look back and study the past to learn from unsuccessful and successful accomplish-ments, and look forward to formulate and envision the future. However, Vasari visuali-zes Lorenzo The Magnificent as a prudent ruler but with a different mythical image. Vasari does not portray the traditional Janus face of Prudence with a head of an old man, depicting the past, and a head of a young woman, alluding to the future48. In- stead, he places Lorenzo's portrait in semi-profile, attending at present to the benevolent suggestions of a beautiful mask, and depicting a burning ancient lamp behind Lorenzo, demonstrating that he has learned from past experiences how to adroitly lead. Vasari alludes to this signification of the imagery behind Lorenzo in his descriptive letter to Ottaviano de'Medici:

This is to signify The Magnificent Lorenzo's singular excellence in government; not only in eloquence, but also in everything, maximized by his good judgment, he was a beacon to his illustrious descendants and his magnificent city.

Furthermore, Vasari adorns the attire of Lorenzo The Magnificent with specific Renaissance accessories, such as a leather belt with a large metal ring to hang a mer-chant's purse or a banker's pouch and a silk sash or pocket-handkerchief (Fig. 18)49. These fashionable accessories are part of the attire of Lorenzo as Vasari describes them in his letter:

I shall depict him [Lorenzo de' Medici] sitting, dressed in a long gown of purple, lined with fur of white wolves. In his right hand, he holds a sash, hanging from the center of a large antique belt. Also hanging from the belt is a red velvet purse.

Fig.18. Anonymous, Merchant-banker, 1470s, engraving Marcello Vannucci, I Medici(Newton & Compton, Rome, 2005), p.47.

However, these accessories are not just selected for decorative purposes but the signification of their functions reveals a specific meaning. In Florentine Quattrocento engravings, the attire of a Renaissance merchant and banker consists of a tunic with a leather belt with a large metal ring to hold a hanging pouch or a purse. Vasari embel-lishes this traditional imagery by portraying Lorenzo's wearing also a white sash or a white silk scarf, a purple-like tunic with trims of feline's fur around the collar and the edges of the sleeves, demonstrating the role of the sitter, which is of an established merchant-banker. Lorenzo's belt reveals not only the functional nature of his role as a banker, thus wearing a large leather belt to hang a purse carrying money, but also alludes to privilege role of the person who wears the belt. The belt like the sash because they encircle the person, they become symbols of demarcation as well as symbols of protection, binding the power of the person's social status and role50. Lorenzo's red purse or pouch suggests the precious content carried by the banker. After all, at this time, the Medici family are the Merchants of Florence as well of Europe. With eagerness and false expectation, the mask depicting Deceit or Falsehood looks directly at Lorenzo's purse; not realizing that the benevolent merchant has discovered his treachery and is requesting a truce51.

On the pier is the head of Deceit or Falsehood [Bugia], biting her tongue at being discovered by The Magnificent Lorenzo.

Traditionally, the purse is an attribute of Mercury, the God of Commerce and In-dustry. In the Imagini delli Dei de gl'Antichi, Cartari portrays Mercury carrying a pouch full of money referring to his trade and its implications of abundance and richness as well as the virtues of liberality and charity (Fig. 19)52. Vasari parallels the indu- strious role of Mercury with Lorenzo's merchant endeavor, and identifies Lorenzo with Mercury, comparing the benevolence of Mercury with the generosity of Lorenzo. Purpo-sely, Vasari places the mask of Deceit, personifying the vice of Avarice, facing Lorenzo, who embodies the virtues of liberality and charity. For Vasari, the inclusion of the purse, hanging from belt and surrounded by the sash, alludes to the skillful business qualities of Lorenzo The Magnificent as well as his munificent nature. Lorenzo's magnanimity and love for the arts and culture benefited the citizen of Florence and enriched the beau-ty of the city.

Fig.19. Vincenzo Cartari, Mercury, 1557, engraving  Imagini delli Dei de gl'Antichi (Nuova Stile Regina, Genova, 1987) [Photo: author]

In the painting of the Portrait of Lorenzo The Magnificent, Vasari is not only re-ferring to ancient literary or artistic representations and interpretations of political con-flicts or corruptions, but also he is alluding to ancient artistic theory of representations and their connection, e.g., a verbal form versus a visual form. In his painting, Vasari is addressing to Horace's ut pictura poesis(«as is painting, so is poetry» or «painting is like poetry»). The Mannerist painter, imitating the ancient poet, views a painted por-trait as an emblem, a moral and didactic image of Ciceronian and Machiavellian virtù. In the emblematic tradition, an emblem is composed of three parts: an inscription (title or motto), a picture (an image), and a subscription (a written explanation of the meaning of the motto and the image). Vasari parallels this literary structure in his pictorial ima-gery: 1) the Latin inscription originally painted on the marble bases and vessels can be equated to an emblem's inscription; 2) the portrait or image of the Lorenzo represents an emblem's pictura; and 3) an emblem's subscription is indicated by Vasari's account of the painting in his writing, such as his autobiography and letter to Ottaviano de'Me-dici explaining the meaning of the painting. Thus, Vasari's Portrait of Lorenzo The Magnificent alludes to Lorenzo The Magnificent as a personification of Justice and Prudence or Virtue and Good Judgment and as an embodiment of Machiavelli's image of a prince.

Furthermore, in the painted imagery and its composition including a painting within a painting (portrait) and simulated sculptures (vases and pillars), Vasari also refers to another type of paragone, the superiority of painting over sculpture or vice versa. A debate long discussed in humanistic circles of the Cinquecento and initiated by the literato Benedetto Varchi53. In the compositional construction of the painting, Vasari reveals many levels ofparagone. The painted portrait (Lorenzo), a painting within a painting, is on the foreground, affirming a physical proximity, while the vases and the architectural elements are placed in the background of the painting, implying a metaphy-sical distance. In the completed painting and in the painted portrait, Vasari reveals the focus of the past istoria, the significance of Lorenzo The Magnificent, and the present istoria, the Medici family, the patron (Ottaviano de' Medici) and acquired collector (Ales-sandro de'Medici) of the painting, continuing the cultural, moral and political pursuits of their ancestors. In contrast, in the simulated sculpture and architecture, Vasari addres-ses not only at the proximity of time with the depiction of an extraordinary Medici personage, Lorenzo The Magnificent, but also at a historical time with the Latin inscrip-tions in the vases and in the classical architectural elements, which allude to universal values, munificence, goodness and justice.

Years later, 1560-65, in the Palazzo Vecchio, in the Apartments of Leon X orSala di Lorenzo il Magnifico, Vasari repeats and expands the earlier portrait composition of Lorenzo, surrounding him among ambassadors and dignitaries from other nations, who are praising his prudence in diplomacy by offering various exotic gifts (compare Figs. 1 and 20). In this composition, Vasari depicts Lorenzo seated in a marble throne. He is wearing a purple tunic with a merchant belt and a banker's purse. In addition, Lorenzo holds a pocket-handkerchief or ceremonial fazzoletto. Important dignitaries offering unusual gifts, including exotic animals to expand the Medici's zoo collection, surround Lorenzo The Magnificent. Some of the depicted personages are actual figures, who are gesticulating and actively energized by the celebratory event of honoring Lo-renzo The Magnificent, while other figures are symbolic or allegorical; their action are staged and frozen; their cast down gaze or closed eyes denote a spiritual connection. These figures are personification of virtues, Prudence and Fortitude.

Fig.20. Giorgio Vasari, Lorenzo the Magnificent Receiving the Ambassadors of the Major Powers, 1560-1565 (Sala di Lorenzo il Magnifico, Palazzo Vecchio, Florence) [Photo: author]

Theatrical decorations ornament the reception scene, in one of the banners, for exam-ple, painted with colored plumes, a golden diamond ring and a ribbon with the word «Semper» decorate the background of the celebratory scene (Fig. 21).

Fig.21. Giorgio Vasari, Banner in Lorenzo the Magnificent Receiving the Ambassadors of the Major Powers, 1560-1565, detail (Sala di Lorenzo il Magnifico, Palazzo Vecchio, Florence) [Photo: author].

This conceit de-rives from Giovio's impresa for the Medici family (Fig. 22)54. The impresa is based on a Medici family design of three intertwined diamond rings with the motto «Semper» («Forever»). Cosimo Il Vecchio, Lorenzo's grandfather, selects this design to indicate the close royal connection of the Medici with France and Spain. Lorenzo adds three plumes with different colors, green, white and red, indicating that when an individual follows God's love, three virtues will flourish in one's life: Faith (Fides), Hope (Spes) and Charity (Caritas). In the painting, Vasari appropriates Giovio's description for the Medici Impresa 36, associating the white plume with Faith, the green plume with Hope, and the red plume with Charity (compare Figs. 21 and 22).

Fig.22. Paolo Giovio, Dialogo dell'imprese militari et amorose, 1574, Impresa 36 (Glasgow University Library) in www.italianemblems.arts.gla.ac.uk/impresa

In the painting, next to the banner and behind Lorenzo The Magnificent, there are two young women hovering over him, one is holding a snake, and the other is embracing a column (Fig. 22). The figure holding a snake wears a headdress decorated with a sna-ke. In Iconologia, Ripa cites the snake as an attribute of the figurazione of Prudenza (Prudence) Thus anticipating Ripa'sfigurazione, Vasari embodies his figure with the attribute of snake as the personification of Prudence (compare Figs 23 and 24)55. The other figure holding a column is crowned with a leonine headdress (Fig. 23). The com-bination of the two attributes the lion's cap and the column allude to the personification of Fortitude as well as of Constancy56. Also, Ripa describes the figurazione of Fortezza (Fortitude) holding leonine attributes (Fig. 25)57.

Fig.23. Giorgio Vasari, Prudence and Fortitude in Lorenzo the Magnificent Receiving the Ambassadors of the Major Powers, 1560-1565, detai (Sala di Lorenzo il Magnifico, Palazzo Vecchio, Florence) [Photo: author]

Fig.24. Cesare Ripa, Prudence (Prudenzia), engraving, Iconologia (Tozzi, Padua, 1618, reprint, ed. Piero Buscaroli, TEA, Milan, 1992) [Photo: author]

Fig.25. Cesare Ripa, Fortitude (Fortitude), engraving, Iconologia (Tozzi, Padua, 1618, reprint, ed. Piero Buscaroli, TEA, Milan, 1992) [Photo: author]

Because of its vertical supportive structure and solid construction, the column be-comes a symbol of moral connotations, signifying qualities of endurance and courage in moments of adversity. Ripa as well represents the figurazioneof Costanza (Constan-cy) embracing column (Fig. 26)58. However, the symbolism of the column also con- tains historical or military associations, marking commemorative events of victory, such as the ancient Pillars of Hercules or the Roman Column of Trajan and the Column of Marcus Aurelius59. In Dialogo dell'imprese militari et amorose, Impresa 9, Giovio composes an impresa for Charles V, depicting the columns of Hercules as a symbol of moral and political strength (Fig. 27). In the painting, Vasari is again honoring Lorenzo The Magnificent as a formidable leader for his moral and physical courage and fortitude in governing Florence, and comparing him to ancient famous rulers, such as Hercules and Roman emperors, who also struggled for justice and benevolence during their reign (compare Figs. 23 with 24, 25, and 26).

Fig.26. Cesare Ripa, Constancy, (Costanza), engraving, Iconologia (Tozzi, Padua, 1618, reprint, ed. Piero Buscaroli, TEA, Milan, 1992) [Photo: author]

In portraying the mythical image of Lorenzo The Magnificent, Vasari acknowledges how demanding is the task of an artist in creating historical paintings and lifelike por-traits («ritrattare dal vero or ritratta al naturale» or «to portray from nature» or «depict a natural portrait»)60. For this reason, Vasari examines earlier portraits of Lorenzo as well as his death mask to depict a dal vero portrait. For Vasari, the artist must study the past in order to interpret the present, as he has prepared for the paintings of Palazzo Vecchio by «reading ancient and modern histories of the city and by searching out and studying works for documentary purposes»61. Moreover, in theRagionamenti, Vasari stresses that in painting, «tutto ha da aver significato» («everything must have mea-ning»)62. But Vasari, like Machiavelli, composes a paradoxical Medicean's realm: where justice and wisdom coexist with deceit and imprudence; where the artistry of astuteness and mastery is glorified for the sake of peace and good government; where an absolute benevolent ruler, Lorenzo The Magnificent, is praised for his virtù of elo-quence and where a Renaissance city like Florence can only flourish under the aggran-dizement of fame and glory of the Medicean dynasty.

NOTE