Piero di Cosimo

“ Once at Fiesole, by whatever means you reach it, do not neglect to climb the monastery steps to the very top. It is a day of climbing, and a hundred or more steps either way mean nothing now. For here is a gentle little church with swift, silent monks in it, and a few flowers in bowls, and a religious picture by that strange Piero di Cosimo whose heart was with the gods in exile; and the view of Monte Ceceri, on the other side of Fiesole, seen through the cypresses here, which could not be better in disposition had Benozzo Gozzoli himself arranged them, is very striking and memorable. ”

“ For three years the boy worked steadily with his new master, but by that time Barile saw that better teaching was needed than he could give. So after much thought the old man went to the great Florentine artist Piero di Cosimo, and asked him if he would agree to receive Andrea as his pupil. 'You will find the boy no trouble,' he urged. 'He has wonderful talent, and already he has learnt to mix his colours so marvellously that to my mind there is no artist in Florence who knows more about colour than little Andrea' Cosimo shook his head in unbelief. ”

“ Vasari relates that Piero excelled in designing pageants and triumphal processions for the pleasure-loving youths of Florence, and gives a vivid description of one such procession at the end of the carnival of 1507, which illustrated the triumph of death. Piero di Cosimo exercised considerable influence upon his fellow pupils Albertinelli and Bartolommeo della Porta and was the master of Andrea del Sarto. ”

“ He settled in Florence, where the chief branch of his family continued to flourish, and had for his second master Piero di Cosimo, that jocund and facile painter and vivid and harmonious colourist, under whose brush the pagan deities came to life again. This Giusto was by no means a mediocre artist, but he consumed all his forces in the vain effort to reconcile his primary Gothic education with the newly awakened spirit of the Renaissance. Towards the middle of the seventeenth century the Sperelli family migrated to Naples. ”

“ Having returned to Florence with some money, Rosselli, lived much at his ease, hut occupied himself with his labours as usual, having in his company that Piero who was always called Piero di Cosimo, his disciple, who had assisted him in his works for the chapel of San Sisto in Pome. Among other things, Piero di Cosimo [16] executed the landscape of the picture which represents the Preaching of Christ, and which is considered to be the best part of the painting. Another disciple of the same master was Andrea di Cosimo, who occupied himself much with the “Grottesche.” ”

“ Baccio d' Agnolo had carved wonderful coffers, chairs, and bedsteads in walnut wood. Pontormo painted beautiful cabinets and cassoni, and Granacci, Francesco d' Ubertini Verdi, called Bacchiacca, and Andrea were all employed on the walls. Andrea furnished two pictures; the one tells the story of Joseph in Canaan, the other gives his life in Egypt. The style is that of Piero di Cosimo, but with greater excellence and more dignified figures. The landscape is highly finished and minute, and has a part of the story in every nook of it. ”

“ If Andrea, a contadino by birth, an artisan by education, was not originally of the most refined nature, his artistic training did not go far towards refining him. Giovanni Barile was a coarse painter and a rough man; he had, however, generosity enough to see that the boy was worthy of better teaching, and got him entered in the bottega of Piero di Cosimo, who had attained a good rank as a colourist, his eccentricities possibly adding to his reputation. ”

“ Biadi classes Andrea's works in three styles. The first showing the influence of Piero di Cosimo, the second—to which the best works in the Servi cloisters belong—is a larger and more natural style, after the study of Michelangelo and Leonardo.
The third is the natural development in his own practice of a perfect knowledge of art, and a just appreciation of nature. The Birth of the Baptist and the Cenacolo, of San Salvi, belong to his last and greatest manner. In 1515 the Florentine artists were employed on more perishable works than frescoes. ”

“ Associated with these are two lesser men, who lived considerably beyond the limits of the fifteenth century, but whose artistic methods never went past it; Piero di Cosimo (1462-1521) and Lorenzo di Credi (1459-1537) . The former (called after Cosimo Rosselli, his master) was one of the most piquant personalities in the art world of Florence, as all readers of Romola [101] know. As a painter, he has been very much overestimated; at his best, he is a sort of Botticelli, with the Botticellian grace and the Botticellian poetry almost all left out. He was magnificent at designing pageants ”

“ His admirations were shifting—now Signorelli, again the Flemish realists and Leonardo: incompatible attractions.
Fig. 144. Piero di Cosimo. Cleopatra.—Chantilly.
You may sense his quality in two wall panels, now in the Metropolitan Museum, [49] made for some palace. Piero had read over the legend of primitive man as told by Ovid, and quickly his mind bred phantoms. First he conceived a state where dominion trembled between man and the brute creation. Savage men with the unfair advantage of fire are exterminating the beasts, among whom fight those half-men, the centaurs, Figure 143. ”

“ Among these spectacles, which were numerous as well as ingeniously arranged, I am inclined briefly to describe one, which was, for the most part, invented by Piero, when he had already attained to mature age; this show was not of a pleasing or attractive character, but, on the contrary, was altogether strange, terrible, and unexpected: it gave no small pleasure to the people nevertheless, for as in their food they sometimes prefer the sharp and bitter savours, so in their pastimes are they attracted by things horrible ”

“ But we will now return to the art and works of Piero. He received a commission to paint a picture for the chapel of the Tebaldi family, in the church of the Servite Monks, who therein preserve the vestments, and a cushion or pillow, used by San Filippo, who was a brother of their order. The subject of this work is Our Lady, standing on a slight elevation; she has a book in her hand, but is not accompanied by the divine Child; she turns her head towards the heavens, and above her is seen the Holy Spirit, by whose light she is illuminated ”

“ However, showing far more courage than he was supposed to possess, he had himself borne on a litter from his villa to Florence, defeated his enemies’ designs, and firmly re-established his authority. But his success may be mainly attributed to the enormous prestige bequeathed by Cosimo to his posterity. Piero died at the end of five years’ reign, on the 3rd of December 1469, leaving two sons, Lorenzo (1449–1492) and Giuliano (1453–1478) . ”

“ I hear Piero’s foot has given him some trouble. I know not what thou hast decided about staying or returning; if thou dost return here put all thy belongings together in one place, so that if they are wanted thou wilt not be obliged to ask those women to find them, and so drive them crazy. I think Cosimo has written to thee about the strong box he wants. Here the plague has ceased, and I am glad thou art coming back; although it might be well to stay a little longer and see how thy health goes, but thou canst always return there if necessary. ”

“ Cosimo had two sons, our father Piero, born ... and our uncle Giovanni, born ... On September ... 1433 our grandfather Cosimo was imprisoned in the Palace, and in danger of losing his head. On September 9th he was banished to Padua, together with his brother Lorenzo, a sentence confirmed by the Balìa of 1433 on the 11th, and on the 16th December he was permitted to reside anywhere in the Venetian territory, but not nearer to Florence than Padua. ”

“ After the strong personality of Cosimo and his masterful manipulation of commercial and political affairs, perhaps the unambitious rule of his son Piero was a necessary and healthful corollary. Piero de’ Medici maintained the ground his father had made his own, and gave away nothing of the predominance of his family, and he made way, after a brief exercise of authority, for his brilliant son, Lorenzo.
Piero’s character and career again prove the truth of the adage: “Ability rarely runs in two successive generations.” ”

“ But death put an end to these most praiseworthy intentions. Tormented by increasing infirmity and anguish of mind, he died in the fifty-third year of his age. His country could not fully recognise his worth and his goodness, because until nearly the end of his life he was associated with his father Cosimo, and the few years during which he survived him were passed in civil contests and constant illness.” Piero died at Careggi on December 2, 1469, and was buried in S. Lorenzo, near his father. ”

“ When on the death of Filippo Maria Visconti in 1447 Milan declared herself a Republic, popular feeling in Florence ran high in her favour. It needed all Cosimo’s authority and influence to induce his fellow-citizens to assist Sforza in seizing supreme power. Cosimo saw that as a republic Milan would inevitably fall a prey to Venice, and thus the communications of Italy with the North would be cut off. A strong ruler who owed his crown to Florence would be an invaluable ally, and preserve the balance of power in Italy. We shall see that Piero faithfully carried out his father’s policy. ”

“ Cosimo increased his own authority and that of the republic by aiding Francesco Sforza to become duke of Milan (1450) , and he sided with him in the war against Venice (1452–1454) . In 1452 the emperor Frederick III. passed through Florence on his way to be crowned in Rome, and was received as a friend. During the last years of Cosimo’s life, affairs were less under his control, and the gonfaloniere Luca Pitti, a vain and ambitious man, introduced many changes, such as the abasement of the authority of the podestà and of the capitano, which Cosimo desired but was glad to attribute to others. ”

“ In this world of brief sunshine Cosimo appears to us very delightfully as the protector of the arts, the sincere lover of learning, the companion of scholars. To him in some sort the world owes the revival of the Platonic Philosophy, for the Greek Argyropolis lived in his house, and taught Piero his son and Lorenzo his grandson the language of the Gods. When Gemisthus Pletho came to Florence, Cosimo made one of his audience, and was so moved by his eloquence that he determined to establish a Greek academy in the city on the first opportunity. ”

“ At the foot of the stairs we met Don Paolo returning from his quail nets, puffing and blowing, and grumbling at the Provost’s hurry to get to church. “Was he afraid of not finishing mass in time to get back to dinner, the great glutton? Do, for any sake, go on, Cosimo; do me the kindness—bad luck to this sort of work!—and tell them to be getting ready in the meantime, and I’ll come in ten minutes—if they don’t like that, they may sing mass by themselves....”
“Do you see?” whispered Sor Cosimo to me, “that’s his way. If he doesn’t catch any birds he becomes a regular beast. ”

“ The father threw Bianca Cappello into his son’s face, and he, in exchange, flung back Eleanora degli Albizzi! At length, Cosimo desisted from the acrimonious warfare, content to let things be as they might be at the Pitti Palace and Pratolino, whilst he was left in seclusion with his innamorata at Castello. Cardinal Ferdinando, a boy of fifteen, lived in Rome, and Don Piero, only ten, was indifferent to such matters, but Duchess Isabella of Bracciano was intensely interested, an amiable go-between her father and Don Francesco. ”

“ Therefore, my Lorenzo, whilst I applaud you for not despising the writings which teach morals, I beg you to prefer learning from reality instead of from description, as you would prefer a living thing from a dead. Particularly as you have decided to emulate that aged man on whom our Senate bestowed the title of Father of His Country. I mean the great Cosimo, your grandfather and my lord. A man prudent above all men, pious towards God, just and most charitable towards men, temperate in living, diligent in his care for his family, and still more so in the affairs of the Republic ”

“ But real goodness is above malice and suspicion, and Giovanni preferred to suffer for the peace of the Republic rather than harm his beloved country by attempting to change the government for the benefit of Messer Palla and himself. Thus he gave no hold to his enemies, and Cosimo, astonished, desired to have him as a friend and relation. So in 1461 he gave Nannina, daughter of his son Piero, to Giovanni’s second son Bernardo, a lad younger than the bride. ”

“ Pope Pius II. also declared, “Nothing is denied to Cosimo. He is the arbiter of peace and of war, and the moderator of the laws. Not so much a private citizen as the lord of the country. The policy of the Republic is discussed in his house; he it is who gives commands to the magistrates. Nought of royalty is wanting to him save the name and the state of a king.”
Contessina de’ Medici to Ginevra, wife of her son Giovanni, at the Baths of Petriolo
Dearest Daughter,—In these days I received a letter from thee and learn thou art well, which rejoices me. ”

“ Lorenzo and Giuliano, the two sons of Piero, travelled abroad to the Courts of Milan and Ferrara with the style and state of more than simple citizens. At home they occupied the first place on all occasions of public ceremony, receiving royal visitors on terms of equality, and performing the hospitalities of the republic like men who had been born to represent its dignities. Lorenzo's marriage to Clarice Orsini, of the noble Roman house, was another sign that the Medici were advancing on the way toward despotism. Cosimo had avoided foreign alliances for his children. ”