House or palace?

Before considering where the Vespucci art collection was kept and how it was displayed, I need to ask myself the following questions: where did the Vespucci live? Is it possible to locate the family palace in Florence today? Unfortunately these simple questions have no simple answers: apparently the family did not owed just a palace but several houses. This information complicates the research because investigations cannot focus on one site only but have to take into consideration both the palace and the houses. Working on different sites might also complicate the reconstruction of the family collection that, in all probability, was not kept in one place only but spread in the several properties. Ouch!

I managed to find information on the Vespucci houses on Internet. Browsing several websites I came across information relating the palace that used to belong to the Vespucci. The building still stands today in Florence (via dei Servi) and it is commonly known as Palazzo Incontri. The palace was sold to Giovanni Vespucci in 1499 and it appears to be the building in which, according to Vasari, Botticelli and Piero di Cosimo painted two rooms (see previous post, Friday 10 December 2010) The history of the building is well explained on the palace website: http://www.palazzoincontri.com/notiziein.htm. A valuable (although not academic) source is also the brief description available on Wikipedia: http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palazzo_Incontri

                                                   Palazzo Incontri

Online I also came across the transcriptions of some documents of the Florentine Catasto related to the Vespucci family (http://e-prints.unifi.it/archive/00000583/01/Pagine_9-87.pdf) These documents, dated 1451-1515, show that by 1451 the family was living in the Ognissanti area, in the street called Via Nuova (today Via della Porcellana). Apparently the Vespucci family owed houses in that street before acquiring the palace in 1499.

While the Vespucci palace still stands today (although greatly modified by later construction works), less is known about the house(s) in Via della Porcellana. Are they still visible? It is known that in 1380 Simone di Piero Vespucci, who was living in that street, decided to open a hospital for the citizens and his house became part of the hospital today known as Spedale San Giovanni di Dio. Visiting the hospital in Florence would be a good starting point for my research.

Questions that come to mind are: how many houses did the Vespucci owed in Via delle Porcellane? How were they connected to the ‘Spedale? Did the family continue to live there after Giovanni Vespucci bought the palace? How were the family’s lineages grouped in the houses? Further research will hopefully shed light on these issues.

Botticelli’s Venus and Mars: a controversial panel

I feel that my research on the Vespucci collection needs a precise starting point as, so far, a lot of artists and pictures were mentioned but nothing ‘seriously’ considered. I have therefore decided to focus on Botticelli’s Venus and Mars panel (National Gallery of London) that seems to me one of the most fascinating pieces probably belonged to the Vespucci. To make things clearer (to myself first!) I shall divide this part into several sections in order to provide a general overview on the meaning, nature, provenance of the panel and the problems that it raises when related to the Vespucci patronage

                                                Botticelli, Venus and Mars (London)

Meaning.  Mars and Venus, respectively God of War and Goddess of Love (and once lovers) are represented facing each other. Venus is watching Mars sleeping while three infant satyrs play with Mars’ armour, and a fourth is resting under the God’s arm. The presence of an alert Venus and of an asleep and unarmed Mars brought scholars to consider the painting a symbol of love conquering war.

Occasion and characters. The panel has been often linked to the wedding of the Genoese Simonetta Cattaneo and the Florentine Marco Vespucci (cousin of Amerigo the explorer) celebrated in 1468. Simonetta was renowned for being the most beautiful woman of the time in the city of Florence. She became the muse of painters such as Piero di Cosimo and Botticelli and source of inspiration for poets such as Poliziano and his Giostra. Literature sources rmoreover remember that after Simonetta arrived in Florence every gentlemen fell in love with her. Among the others there was Giuliano de Medici. Botticelli seems to have been particularly keen on the Genoese lady as – according to academia – she was the subject of several of his paintings such as the Birth of Venus, the Primavera and – apparently - Venus and Mars (all these pictures in fact seem to depict the same lady). Moreover two Botticelli’s portraits of Simonetta are today in Berlin (Gemäldegalerie ) and Frankfurt (Städelsches Kunstinstitut).

                                                  Botticelli, Simonetta Vespucci (Berlin)

                                                 Botticelli, Simonetta Vespucci (Frankfurt)

                               Piero di Cosimo, Simonetta Vespucci (Musée Condé, Chantilli)

Function and provenance. The panel is considered a piece of bedroom furniture, perhaps a bedhead or piece of wainscoting (the famous 'spalliera' ) or backboard from a chest (‘cassone’) that adorned Florentine houses. The panel is considered a Vespucci commission because of the wasps flying around Mars’ head at the top right of the picture. They suggest a link with the Vespucci family, though they could have been simply a symbol of the stings of love (love comes with pain). If the picture belonged to the Vespucci and if it was part of a bedroom furniture, it is possible to think that it was displayed in one of the bedrooms of the Vespucci palace. However, before making any assumptions, it is necessary to point out the problems related to the Vespucci palace (object of my next post).

Botticelli. Venus and Mars. detail (wasps top right)

Problems. The panel raises several issues that my research will try to tackle. First of all the occasion in which the panel was painted. It seems unlikely that the picture was commissioned for the wedding of Simonetta and Marco. While the wedding took place in 1468-9 Botticelli’s work is dated around 1485. Another problem is the function of the picture. Academia still debates whether it was part of a wedding chest (cassone) or a spalliera. Hopefully archival material in Florence will help to cast light on this issue. Finally the provenance: was the panel kept in the Vespucci palace? Before investigating this aspect I shall introduce the Vespucci palace in the next post.



The Vespucci as art patrons. Part 3.

Part 3. Social interaction.

One of the most illuminating – and rare – passages on the Vespucci’s role as art patrons is Arciniegas’s portrait of the family’s social interaction in Why America? Condensed in slightly more than a page, Arciniegas’ contribution brings up names, dates and issues all worth investigating:

▪ When Giuliano Vespucci was in charge of the works in Santa Maria Novella Alberti worked on the façade of the church. This is confirmed in Baldini’s publication on the Vespucci family.

▪ When Vasari went to study with Michelangelo in Florence, he lodged in the house of Niccolò Vespucci and Niccolò and Vasari became friends. Their friendship seems to be confirmed in the Vasari papers kept at the Beinecke Library (Yale University). In the filza number 34 there are the ‘Fogli attinenti alla famiglia Vespucci’/'Papers related to the Vespucci family' in which Niccolò is variously mentioned. The family was moreover linked to Vasari through to the wedding of one of his daughters with Francesco Vespucci.

▪ Verrocchio lived in a house that belonged to Guido Antonio Vespucci.

▪ Andrea Sansovino was discovered and made known by Simone Vespucci.

▪ The Vespucci had relationships with Botticelli, Ghirlandaio and Piero di Cosimo as Vasari remembers in his Vite.

▪ Leonardo was impressed by the virile beauty of Amerigo Vespucci's grandfather and, according to the legend, he followed Amerigo the Elder about the streets of  Florence, fixed his features in his mind and drew a crayon portrait (Vasari, Life of Leonardo da Vinci). Also a recent discovery seems to link Leonardo da Vinci to the Vespucci family. In the Heidelberg Library (Germany) has been lately found a note belonging to  Agostino Vespucci, chancellor of Florence. The note, dating 1503, confirms the presence in that year of the Mona Lisa and it indirectly establishes a relationship between Agostino Vespucci and Leonardo. (Burke, Jill. Agostino Vespucci's marginal note about Leonardo da Vinci in Heidelberg).

▪ The Vespucci were friends of philosophers and poets such as Macchiavelli, Luigi Pulci, Poliziano and Ludovico Ariosto (who was hosted in Niccolò house when he travelled to Florence)

Arciniegas pages are inspiring. Names such as Alberti and Leonardo mentioned in relation to the Vespucci not only contribute to give shape to the family networking but also allow us to consider the quality of these interactions. Together with Botticelli, Ghirlandaio and Piero di Cosimo, Alberti and Leonardo were among the most important painters of Florence and this should make us consider the Vespucci’s power in the city and the family’s social status. At this stage, two more artists that can be added to the list: Sebastiano del Piombo and Filippo Lippi.  The former painted a group portrait and for the identification of one of the characters (below, far right) the name of Amerigo has been proposed.

Sebastiano del Piombo, Group portrait (1516)

Inventories of Filippino Lippi’s workshop made upon the artist’s death (1504) offer a hint of his activity as a tondaro. Among the inventories there is a record of ‘uno tom(n)do grande incorniciato, di Giovanni Vespucci’/a large, framed tondo representing Giovanni Vespucci (Carl, D. 1987. ‘Das inventor der werkstatt von Filippino Lippi aus dem jahre 1504, Mitteilungen des Kunsthistorichen Institutes in Florenz XXXI’: 384-89) Lippi’s tondo opens a whole chapter on the family portraits. Several examples survive today like the portrait of Amerigo Vespucci (Uffizi) or those of Simonetta Vespucci variously painted by Botticelli and Piero di Cosimo. Portraiture aspects should be further considered.

It seems about time to decide what period to investigate. As my objective is to  nail down the activity and the commissions of the Vespucci in the Renaissance, investigations can be narrowed down to the years 1460-1520 when the paintings/artists so far mentioned are dated. This is however only a preliminary consideration and the time-frame might change in itinere.

The Vespucci as art patrons. Part 2

Part 2. The family chapel

The Vespucci patronage was not limited to the family palace but involved also the religious sphere. In the district where the Vespucci lived, Borgo Ognissanti, stands the homonymous church (Chiesa di Ognissanti) that hosts the Vespucci chapel painted and completed by Ghirlandaio in 1471-1472. The decoration consists of a lower fresco, the Deposition, and an upper one, the Madonna della Misericordia.  The latter is doubtless the most interesting of the two: the lunetta in fact portrays the Vespucci family underneath the protective robe of the Madonna. The fresco appears to be historically important as is the only group depiction of the Vespucci family known so far and it allows us to recognize some members such as Amerigo and Simonetta Vespucci.  Moreover it has been suggested that the fresco might be in some sort of relation with the Waldseemüller Map  (Library of Congress, Washington): the shape of the Virgin’s robe seems in fact to resemble the shape of the Map. These aspects and the possible connections between the robe and the map will be tackled in further posts.

                                                             Ghirlandaio, Vespucci chapel

In the church is also preserved a fresco representing Sant’Agostino attributed to Botticelli . The saint seems to have been commissioned by the Vespucci as in upper part of the depiction is visible the family coats of arms featuring the wasps.

Botticelli, St. Agostino



The Vespucci as art patrons. Part 1

At this initial stage of the research my objective is not only to gain a general knowledge of the Vespucci family and its members  but also looking at the works of art the family  commissioned.  It is rather  difficult to research on Florence from the UK and, at this stage, investigations can only be carried out online. From a preliminary search (thanks Google!) I came across several information related to the Vespucci’s artistic commissions and the family connections with Florentine painters and humanists of the time. In order to give some sort of order to this ‘meaty’ topic, this part of the blog will be divided into three sections: the palace, the church and the family’s social interaction.

Part 1. The palace

According to Vasari two rooms of the Vespucci palace were decorated with depictions of Botticelli and Piero di Cosimo. In the Life of Botticelli  Vasari states: “round an apartment of the house of Giovanni Vespucci […] he painted many pictures enclosed by frames of walnut wood […] with many most lively and beautiful figures”.

Scholars  recognized in Botticelli’s Story of Virginia (Accademia Carrara, Bergamo) and Story of Lucretia (Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston) the pictures mentioned by Vasari. Illustrating moral examples from early Roman history, they have been generally considered commissions for a wedding. Issues have been raised however on the nature of the panels and their location within the domestic interior:  too large to come from cassoni (wedding chests) they probably functioned as headboards for beds. A third panel by Botticelli representing Venus and Mars (National Gallery of London) is widely considered to be a Vespucci commission. From the tree-trunk on which Mars sleeps wasps are swarming:  wasps are an allusion to the name of the Vespucci in whose coat of arms they appear.

Botticelli, Venus and Mars

In the Life of Piero di Cosimo Vasari remembers that Piero painted  ‘bacchanalis scenes  […] wherein he made such strange fauns, satyrs, sylvan gods, little boys […] Sylenus is riding with many kids […]. These representations have been identified with Piero’s The Discovery of Honey (Worcester Art Museum) and the Misfortune of Silenus (Fogg Museum, Cambridge).  As previously stated (Dennis Geronimus, Piero di Cosimo) the hornets of the Misfortune are a ‘close visual pun’ on the wasps, the Vespucci name and - therefore - the family.

Piero di Cosimo, The discovery of honey