The Medici Family of bankers from Mugello Cosimo the Elder Piero (the Gouty) Lorenzo the Magnificient ( ) and Giuliano----- Giulio (Pope Clement VII) ( ) Giovanni ( Pope Leo X)

Cosimo the Elder Always keep out of the public eye but … Undisputed patriach of Florence In 1439 persuaded Pope Eugenius IV to transfer General Councilof the Greek Orthodox Church and Roman Catholic Church in FLORENCE Presence of so many Greek scholars led to the study of Plato, the Platonic Academy, additions to Cosimos library See Benozzo Gozzolis The Procession of the Magi in Medici Palace 1459

The Medici Palace In 1444 Cosimo asked Michelozzo Michelozzi to design the Palace in Via Larga (via Cavour) Michelozzo also worked on the Convent of San Marco Fra eato Angelico dipicted the cells of San Marco Cosimo had a cell there too

San Lorenzo Parish church of the Medici Very old church (393A.D.), reconstructed by Brunelleschi Sculptures by Donatello, Verrocchio … Later by Michelangelo, Pontormo, Rosso Fiorentino Cosimo is buried in the crypt, on the naive: Pater Patriae

Old Sacristy Brunelleschi designed it Donatello executed the statues Tomb of Cosimos sons (Giovanni and Piero) Commissioned by Lorenzo

The New Sacristy Under the Old Sacristy, proves Michelangelos genius Commissioned by Giulianos natural son, Pope Clement VII in 1521 Tombs of Lorenzo and his brother Giuliano: in simple graves near the wall Lorenzo = pensieroso, Giuliano = military chief, 4 allegories: Night, Day, Dusk, Dawn

Chapel of the Princes Luxurious, octagonal edifice,covered in semi- precious stones and marbles Burial place for the Grand dukes 6 porphyry tombs surmounted by bronze statues of the deceased: Cosimo I,, Francesco I, Ferdinando I,Cosimo II, Ferdinando II,Cosimo III. Central pillar remains of Cosimo the elder In all 45 tombs of Medici family

The Laurentian Library Founded by Cosimo the Elder Enriched by Lorenzo Taken to Rome by Leo X Presented to Florence by Clement VII Commissioned Michelangelo to design edifice HALL and staircase

Semi Precious Stones The stones are divided into minerals and rocks (made up of several different minerals) The hardness of the minerals is measured by their resistance to beig worked on The hardness of a stone is based on Mohs scale of 1 to 10 Talc is the softest at 1, the diamond is the hardest at 10

Semi Precious Stones Soft stones (from 1 to 5): marble, alabaster, lapis lazuli, malachite Semi precious stones (or pietre due): chalcedony, agate, jasper, petrified wood, porphyry, rock crystal Gems: emerald, ruby, diamond

Manufacturing Tecnique 1.Glyptics – 3 dimensional manufacturing tecnique for sculptures,vases, cameos, gems 2.Commesso – a particular type of mosaic, used in Ancient Rome, and brought to perfection in Florence in 1588 in the Opificio delle Pietre Dure (Semi precious stones workshop)

Glyptics First a drawing of the object is produced The right stone is chosen (for size and COLOUR) To consume the stone a drill with an emeric wheel is used To polish the object a felt wheel is used Cameos: agate or onyx is used

Commesso Semi precious stones a re too hard to be sculptured and therefore must be consumed They are consumed with an abrasive powder called EMERY Emery powder is formed by sand rich of quartz

Tarsia Bi-dimensional painting made of slices of stone This tecnique is also called Commesso from the latin = joining together The stone is cut into thin slices The artist chooses the stones with the right colour

Tarsia The slices are cut into very precise forms with a special bow with a emery thread The forms are glued to the drawing The pieces are put on a slate (piallaccio), covered with plaster, another slate is glued on the back, the plaster is washed away The stones are polished with a liquid :potè

Inlay (Intarsio) Inlaying technique: The tarsia is placed in a groove of a background stone