PANORAMA, POWER, AND HISTORY: VASARI AND STRADANO'S CITY VIEWS IN THE PALAZZO VECCHIO Pt.I by Ryan E. Gregg A dissertation submitted to Johns Hopkins University in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Baltimore, Maryland May 2008 © 2008 Ryan E. Gregg AH Rights Reserved UMI Number: 3339721 Copyright 2008 by Gregg, Ryan E. All rights reserved. INFORMATION TO USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleed-through, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. ® UMI UMI Microform 3339721 Copyright 2009 by ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 E. Eisenhower Parkway PO Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Abstract Painted topographical views of cities and their environs appear throughout the mid-sixteenth-century fresco decorations of the Palazzo Vecchio. This project focuses primarily on the most extensive series, those in the Quartiere di Leone X. Giorgio Vasari and his assistant Giovanni Stradano painted the five rooms of this apartment between 1556 and 1561. The city views take one of three forms in each painting: as a setting for a historical scene, as the background of an allegory, or as the subject of the view itself. The Quartiere paintings present a history of the Medici and their rule of Florence as a legitimization of the new ducal rule under Cosimo I. The topographical portraits promote this historical argument in two interdependent ways: they present its geographic extent and they promote its cogency. To argue this thesis, the dissertation examines the position of the city views in relation to contemporary historiographic and cartographic practices. It begins by placing the Palazzo Vecchio city portraits within a new school of topographical views deriving from Antwerp, explaining how this type differs in their on-site sketching methods from other survey-dependant types. Vasari used that difference to help build enargeia for the history he presents in the decorations. The sketching proffered a more verisimilar information that lacked the specifics of measurement while capturing the character of the topography. That character permitted greater engagement through memory, thereby heightening the visualization required by historiography. Following three chapters that ground that argument, two sustained studies explain how the city views specific to a single room work in conjunction with the overall decoration. In the Sala di Clemente VII, the views act as settings that subtly manipulate the viewer's judgment of the presented ii history to present the Medici rule of Florence as just. In the Sala di Cosimo I, the city portraits celebrate the duke's fortification program to protect and make cohesive the Tuscan state. In both, and throughout the decorative program, the city paintings work to enhance belief in the dominion of the duke. Advisor: Stephen J. Campbell Second Reader: Herbert L. Kessler in Acknowledgements This project could not have been completed without the support of various individuals and institutions. I must first thank my advisor, Stephen Campbell, whose advice, guidance, and attention helped direct the project to completion. My appreciation also goes to Herbert Kessler, for serving as my second reader, and the members of my defense committee for offering their comments. Charles Dempsey offered assistance in its early stages, and Lawrence Principe gave generously of his time and knowledge as well. Other scholars charitably offered feedback and suggestions, including Julia DeLancey, Caroline Elam, Bruce Edelstein, Francesca Fiorani, Sean Roberts, and Joaneath Spicer. The Johns Hopkins University and the Department of the History of Art were particularly generous to me with financial assistance. The four years of graduate funding they provided permitted me the freedom to focus on dissertation work. The Charles S. Singleton Fellowship provided funding for six months in Florence at the Villa Spelman, which proved crucial in building the foundation for the project. The Singleton Travel Fellowship from the Department of Romance Languages provided the financial means to undertake pivotal travel throughout Tuscany in May 2006. The Sadie and Louis Roth Fellowship, generously funded by Mr. Tony Leichter, paid for travel to London, Oxford, and Stockholm. I must also thank The Walters Art Museum and the Office of the Dean of the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences of The Johns Hopkins University for granting me a Hall Fellowship and a Dean's Teaching Fellowship, both of which provided me with funds in the final stages to complete the dissertation in Baltimore. iv In addition, the support staff of various institutions has proved immensely valuable. I must first express my gratitude to the staff of my department, including Nikki Andrews, Ann Woodward, Don Juedes, and Meghan Gross (recently of the department), who worked tirelessly to assist me in my diverse needs. I need to give especial thanks to Laura di Pofi, formerly at the Villa Spelman, who aided me in contacting and getting access to institutions, archives, and buildings in Florence. I am similarly indebted to the circulation and interlibrary loan staff of the Milton S. Eisenhower Library. I would also like to thank the staff of the Western Art Print Room of the Ashmolean Museum, the Prints and Drawings Study Room at the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Special Reading Room at the Kungl. biblioteket, National Library of Sweden, and the Kupferstichkabinett Staatliche Museen of Berlin, all of whom gave generously of their time. Similarly, the staff of the Palazzo Vecchio, the Archivio del Opera del Duomo, the Archivio di Stato, the Kunsthistorisches Institut, and the Biblioteca Nazionale di Stato, all in Florence, and the Casa Vasari in Arezzo, also deserve thanks for their assistance and patience. I must also thank the anonymous owner of the Torre del Gallo for granting me access to it. Finally, I need to thank the curator of the Rocca at Vicopisano for the private tour and the beer, and the gentleman who assisted me at the Torre del Gallo in Florence, and apologize for forgetting to note their names. My fellow graduate students provided support over the years. Ben Tilghman and Ruth Noyes both offered much-needed feedback and assistance, and I must also thank the latter for her translation skills. Of the other students, Jen Kingsley, Kate Markowski, Christina Nielson, Chris Nygren (who I also thank for the accomodation in Florence), Andrea Olsen, Jill Pederson (who I also must thank for her continued advice), Jennifer v Sliwka, Joyce Tsai, Jannette Vusich, Molly Warnock, and Ittai Weinryb all gave useful suggestions and encouragement. I owe all of them thanks for their comradeship. In addition, I have to thank the Monday dinner crowd for keeping me fed and laughing, and especially Emily Telfair for keeping me typing. Finally, my family deserves my full gratitude. My father and step-mother, Gordon and Mary Gregg, provided both financial and familial support over the many years. My mother, Debbie Gregg, not only did the same, but also managed to find the time to edit drafts of this dissertation and my many other papers, presentations, and applications, for which I am eternally grateful. My brothers and sister-in-law, Colin and Nathan and Holly, have given me many occasions to appreciate their presence. My deepest gratitude, however, goes to my wife, Drea, without whom I would not have finished this project at all. Her typing skills tackled the drudgery for which I had no time, her income kept me roofed, fed, and clothed when mine could not, and her limitless support and love inspired me to keep working. Most importantly, though, I thank her for her patience. VI Table of Contents Abstract ii Acknowledgements iv Table of Contents vii List of Maps ix List of Figures x Introduction 1 Truth in the Renaissance and Its Current Use 11 Chapter 1: The City View Genre 20 Current Scholarship's Classification of City Views 21 Vasari' s Description of Practice for the Siege of Florence 30 City View Divisions I: The Quattrocento Style - 37 City View Divisions II: The Barbari Lineage 41 City View Divisions III: The Antwerp School 50 Origins of the Antwerp School 60 Vasari's Recognition of the Antwerp School 64 The Antwerp School Method 67 Antwerp School Practices in the Palazzo Vecchio Views 70 Conclusion 76 Chapter 2: Historiography and Cartography 79 Historiography 82 Cartography in Historiography 101 The Guardaroba Nuova of the Palazzo Vecchio 111 Northern Precedence for the Combination of History and City Views 122 Conclusion 125 Chapter 3: Topographical Character 128 Vasari's Directions for Approaching the Viewing Experience 135 Character of Place 143 Topographical Character in the Palazzo Vecchio City Views 158 Departures from Vasari's "ritratto dal naturale" 165 Conclusion 184 vn Chapter 4: The Sala di Clemente VII 186 The Theme of the Sala di Clemente VII 188 The Ceiling Paintings and Their Theme of Imperial-Medici Relations 191 Sources for Vasari's History of the Siege of Florence 201 The Siege of Florence: The Painting 209 Strategies in the Other