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Lucrezia Borgia and Ideals of Respectable Femininity

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BEAUTY WITHOUT PITY, AMBITION WITHOUT REMORSE: LUCREZIA BORGIA AND IDEALS OF RESPECTABLE FEMININITY A thesis submitted to the College of the Arts of Kent State University in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts By Gloria Rusconi May 2021 Thesis written by Gloria Rusconi B.B.A., Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 2019 M.A Kent State University, 2021 Approved by Gustav Medicus, Ph.D., Advisor Marie Bukowski, MFA, Director, School of Art John R. Crawford-Spinelli, Ed.D., Dean, College of the Arts TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS viii CHAPTERS 1 I. INTRODUCTION 1 II. LUCREZIA’S VIRTUOSITY IN RENAISSANCE POESIA AND PITTURA 8 III. THE MOST COMPLETE MORAL DEFORMITY 33 IV. BETWEEN MODERN MEDUSAS AND SECULAR SAINTS 58 CONCLUSION 86 APPENDIX I 92 FIGURES 94 BIBLIOGRAPHY 131 iii LIST OF FIGURES Pag Figure 1. Pinturicchio, Disputation of Saint Catherine of Alexandria, 1492-94, fresco with gold leaf. Borgia Apartment, Palazzi Pontifici, Vatican. 9 Figure 2. Pinturicchio, detail of Saint Barbara’s facial features The Martyrdom of Saint Barbara, 1492-94, fresco with gold leaf. Borgia Apartments, Palazzi Pontifici, Vatican. 9 Figure 3. Pinturicchio, detail of Saint Catherine’s facial features Disputation of Saint Catherine of Alexandria, 1492-94, fresco with gold leaf. Borgia Apartment, Palazzi Pontifici, Vatican. 9 Figure 4. Pinturicchio, detail of the triumphal arch Disputation of Saint Catherine of Alexandria, 1492-94, fresco with gold leaf. Borgia Apartment, Palazzi Pontifici, Vatican. 10 Figure 5. Pinturicchio, Scenes from the life of Isis and Osiris, 1492-94, vault fresco with gold leaf. Borgia Apartment, Palazzi Pontifici, Vatican. 11 Figure 6. Mantuan School in the style of Giancristoforo Romano, Portrait Medal of Lucrezia Borgia and “Amor Bendato,” c. 1505, copper alloy, 5.9 cm 20 diameter. Museo Schifanoia, Ferrara. Figure 7. Mantuan School in the style of Giancristoforo Romano, Portrait Medal of Alfonso d’Este and Lucrezia Borgia, cast bronze medal, 0.55 cm 21 diameter, 1501-02. Figure 8. Mantuan School in the style of Giancristoforo Romano, Portrait Medal of Lucrezia Borgia, ca. 1508-1510, copper alloy, 6.06 cm diameter. National Gallery of Art, Washington. 25 Figure 9. Ambrogio de Predis, Bianca Maria Sforza, ca. 1493, 51x32.5 cm, oil on canvas. National Gallery of Art, Washington. 26 iv Figure 10. Bartolomeo Veneto, Lucrezia Borgia, ca. 1508–10, oil on canvas, 58x42 cm. Musée des Beaux-Arts, Nîmes. 27 Figure 11. Giannantonio da Foligno, Reliquary Panels of San Maurelius, ca. 1514, engraved silver. Church of San Giorgio fuori le mura, Ferrara. 29 Figure 12. Giannantonio da Foligno, detail of Lucrezia Borgia Reliquary panels of San Maurelius, ca. 1514, engraved silver. Church of San Giorgio fuori le mura, Ferrara. 30 Figure 13. Dante Gabriel Rossetti, The Borgia, 1860, watercolour, 52.2x54. Victoria and Albert Museum, London. 41 Figure 14. Dante Gabriel Rossetti, To Caper Nimbly in a Lady’s Chamber To the lascivious pleasing of a lute, 1850, pen and ink, 21.5x15 cm. Birmingham City Museum and Art Gallery, Birmingham. 41 Figure 15. Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Lucrezia Borgia, 1860-61, graphite and watercolour on paper, 4.38x2.50 cm. 45 Figure 16. Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Lucrezia Borgia, 1868, graphite and watercolour on paper, 4.38x2.50. Tate, London. 45 Figure 17. Dante Gabriel Rossetti, detail of the decanter and the poppy flower in Lucrezia Borgia, 1868, graphite and watercolour on paper, 4.38x2.50. Tate, London. 46 Figure 18. Dante Gabriel Rossetti, detail of the glass and decanter of red wine in The Borgia, 1868, graphite and watercolour on paper, 4.38x2.50. Tate Museum, London. 47 Figure 19. The Eternal Sin, 1917, poster, Motion Pictures News. 59 Figure 20. Armand Raprad, Lucrezia Borgia, 1922, poster, 24x36, Bauduin Impressions. 60 Figure 21. Still from Lucrezia Borgia (57:55), 1922, film. 60 Figure 22. Lucréce Borgia, poster, 1935. 61 v Figure 23. Still from Lucréce Borgia, directed by Abel Gance, 1922, film. 62 Figure 24. Josep Renau Berenguer, Lucrecia Borgia, 1935, poster, 36x27 cm. 62 Figure 25. Don Juan, 1926, poster, 24x36. 64 Figure 26. Still from “The Borgia,” Don Juan (00:39), 1922, film. 64 Figure 27. Still from “The Borgia,” Don Juan (00:45), 1922, film. 64 Figure 28. Still from “The Borgia” Don Juan (00:32), 1922, film. 64 Figure 29. Theda Bara as Cleopatra, 1917, photograph. 66 Figure 30. Philip Burne-Jones, The Vampire, 1897. 66 Figure 31. Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Helen of Troy, 1863, oil on panel, 31x26.5 cm. Hamburg Kunsthall, Hamburg, Germany. 73 Figure 32. Alfredo Ravasco, Glass case with the hair of Lucrezia Borgia, 1926-1928, ebony, malachite, rock crystal, silver, enamels, pearls, emeralds, rubies, 30cm. Pinacoteca Ambrosiana, Milan, Italy. 77 Figure 33. Alfredo Ravasco, Box with Goldfishes, 1927-1930, agata, silver, coral, guilloche, pearls, 6x23x13 cm. Private Collection 78 Figure 34. Alfredo Ravasco, Oval Bowl with Bears, 1925, agata, enamel, sapphires, pearls, 5x9.5 cm. Private Collection. 78 Figure 35. Alfredo Ravasco, Solar Ostensory, 1926, gold, silver, rubies, pearls, green gems, coral. Chapel of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milan. 78 Figure 36. Alfredo Ravasco, Ostensory, 1932, gold, cloisonnè, pearls, rubies, emeralds, topaz, malachite, coral, agata. Church of Santa Maria presso San Celso Treasury, Milan. 78 Figure 37. Alfredo Ravasco, detail of the pearl strings and cameos of the Glass case with the hair of Lucrezia Borgia, 1926-1928, ebony, malachite, rock crystal, silver, enamels, pearls, emeralds, rubies, 30cm. Pinacoteca Ambrosiana, Milan, Italy. 79 vi Figure 38. Manuel Boix Alvarez, The Borja, 1995-1998, Corts Valencianes, Valencia, Spain. 93 Figure 39. Manuel Boix Alvarez, Lucrècia Borja, 1995-1998, Corts Valencianes, Valencia, Spain. 93 Figure 40. Dosso Dossi (attributed to,) Portrait of a Young Woman, 1519-1530, oil on wood, 74.5 x 7.2 cm, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne. 94 vii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the School of Art at Kent State University for granting me the opportunity to study here, despite all the challenges that we had to overcome. It has been the most wonderful experience. I want to thank specifically my advisor Dr. Gustav Medicus, whose patience and guidance has allowed for me to immediately feel welcome so far from home. I also remain grateful to Professor Reischuck, whom I had the pleasure to work under, and to all other professors and members of the Art History department. My deepest appreciation and love go to my parents, who have always been the most supportive of all my endeavours and have been beside me to overcome every setback, my family, and those who have always pushed me to never settle and always strive for more. To my friends, those who have daily been with me and those that have supported me from afar, proving that distance is an obstacle only if you let it be one, thank you. viii 1 INTRODUCTION “Lucrezia Borgia is the most unfortunate woman in modern history. Is this because she was guilty of the most hideous crimes, or is it simply because she has been unjustly condemned by the world to bear its curse? The question has never been answered.”1 Thus Ferdinand Gregorovius opens his popular biography on Lucrezia Borgia. Immediately, the German historian poses to its readers a fatidic question, for which the answer to the dilemma on the causes of Lucrezia’s infamous reputation will be researched through the entirety of his text. Has the world conspired to frame her figure within negative boundaries, or has she consciously walked into them? The question appears intrinsically uncomplicated because its answer can only be sharp, falling into one of two clear-cut classifications: guilty or not guilty. It is an attempt at finding a permanently fixed and stable identity for the character of Lucrezia, where the author and his readers act almost as final judges and draw from this process all the satisfaction of arriving at a univocal truth. Gregorovius continues: “Of Lucrezia Borgia we have little more than a legend, according to which she is a fury, the poison in one hand, the poignard in the other... I desired to ascertain what manner of personality would be discovered by treating Lucrezia Borgia in accordance with the original records.”2 Acknowledging the mystification that obfuscates her character, the author undertakes the pursuit of clarity on the matter. Probably for the first time in such a systematic way, he challenges the traditional attributes of her figure, usually expressed in evil and negative terms, to navigate the realm of uncertainty. Gregorovius himself defines the boundaries of his study: “Treating Lucretia Borgia in a way entirely different from that in which she had hitherto been examined, but at the same time scientifically... The book itself 1 Ferdinand Gregorovius, Lucretia Borgia (New York: Phaidon Press, 1948), xvii. 2 Gregorovius, Lucretia Borgia, xviii. 1 2 will make my intention perfectly clear, which was simply that of the conscientious writer of history. I have substituted history for romance.”3 In his introduction, Gregorovius deems his approach as revolutionary compared to previous 19th century productions on Lucrezia Borgia. On one hand, he cites Hugo and Guicciardini as great vilifiers of her character and, alongside them, we might also cite many other authors who described her as a sort of “moral monster.” Opposed to this accusatory approach, Gregorovius mentions the undertakings of William Roscoe, Marquis Giovanni Campori, Giovanni Zucchetti, and other historians who “endeavoured, with the aid of history, to clear up the Lucretia legend, and to rehabilitate the honour of the unfortunate woman.”4 Gregorovius, however, continues to operate within the same dualistic framework of victim- victimizer which characterised all these previous histories, and his scientific approach is no less problematic than the univocal vision of Campori or Hugo.
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  • EUI Working Papers

    EUI Working Papers

    DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY AND CIVILIZATION EUI Working Papers HEC 2010/02 DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY AND CIVILIZATION Moving Elites: Women and Cultural Transfers in the European Court System Proceedings of an International Workshop (Florence, 12-13 December 2008) Giulia Calvi and Isabelle Chabot (eds) EUROPEAN UNIVERSITY INSTITUTE , FLORENCE DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY AND CIVILIZATION Moving Elites: Women and Cultural Transfers in the European Court System Proceedings of an International Workshop (Florence, 12-13 December 2008) Edited by Giulia Calvi and Isabelle Chabot EUI W orking Paper HEC 2010/02 This text may be downloaded for personal research purposes only. Any additional reproduction for other purposes, whether in hard copy or electronically, requires the consent of the author(s), editor(s). If cited or quoted, reference should be made to the full name of the author(s), editor(s), the title, the working paper or other series, the year, and the publisher. ISSN 1725-6720 © 2010 Giulia Calvi and Isabelle Chabot (eds) Printed in Italy European University Institute Badia Fiesolana I – 50014 San Domenico di Fiesole (FI) Italy www.eui.eu cadmus.eui.eu Abstract The overall evaluation of the formation of political decision-making processes in the early modern period is being transformed by enriching our understanding of political language. This broader picture of court politics and diplomatic networks – which also relied on familial and kin ties – provides a way of studying the political role of women in early modern Europe. This role has to be studied taking into account the overlapping of familial and political concerns, where the intersection of women as mediators and coordinators of extended networks is a central feature of European societies.