Phaeded wrote: 07 Jul 2023, 21:58
I was jumping ahead to the notion of those figures presented out of context, on cards, stripped of their overt divinity symbols as mere exempli/children of the planets or even just the attributes. Mainly I wanted you to underscore Jupiter's strong association with saetta/sagitta, per our old Tower/lightning arguments.

Interesting. I've sure argued about the meaning of the lightning-bolt before, but I can't remember our specific arguments to this point. My main contention that the tower was merely a prop for the lightning to strike was a crucial insight for me in 2013; it broke the Devil-Lightning couple, the last "narrative nugget" that allowed me to look at the meaning of the trump sequence differently. Not as a stately progression of one subject trumping the other symbolically, an "expanded Petrarch," but as groupings of related subjects for memorizing at the table. In this conception, the Devil belongs in the Fortuna-Fatum group, the "bad things." But I continue to acknowledge different ways of looking at it.

Changing to a topical subject, which is arguably (in theory) related to saetta iconography, here's a discovery I made from Decembrio.

Chapter 69 is "The signs that predicted the defeat of his armies."

It is a truly marvelous and amazing thing to record that every one of his military reverses occured exactly as had been foretold, down to the very day. Take the time he had two armies in the field, one in Lombardy and one in Tuscany. It happened that not long before, the walls surrounding the Castle of Porta Giovia were struck by lightning and the battlements were torn asunder. The stables then caught fire and the entire place was filled with smoke, while the horses broke loose and ran amok, all of which was clearly a sign that some great military disaster was looming. And in fact shortly after this came the news that both of the Milanese armies had been completely destroyed. (Ianziti p. 143)

Well that's pretty dramatic. When did THIS happen? Decembrio doesn't date it. Ianziti and Funk (German translation of 1913) leave it uncommented, and Bartolini (1983 Italian translation) merely waves his hand in the direction of Maclodio and comments on how Decembrio is copying Suetonius Life of Augustus chapter 96 in general. The indefatigable Fossati, in his comments to this passage (p. 426), turns out to be Bartolini's source for the Suetonius reference, as well as the Maclodio one.

But my first thought on reading this passage was "that's Anghiari." But what was the second army, in Lombardy? I knew enough in general to suppose that the only time he was fighting simultaneously in Lombardy and Tuscany was then, 1438-1440. In Decembrio's chapter 23 this is the account of "The fourth Venetian war." Indeed he says

"Finally, with Piccinino defeated in battle at the village of Anghiari, and our forces much depleted in Lombardy, it was time once again to sue for peace" (Ianziti page 31)

. That's two armies, one in Tuscany and one in Lombardy.

Then I had the bright idea to check a contemporary source, Giusto Giusti. He clinches it, page 63, numbers 36 and 39:

Saturday 18 June at noon came the news in Florence that the magnificent count Francesco Sforza had routed the troops of the duke of Milan at Soncino in Lombardy. He captured 2,000 horses, seized all their carriages, and took control of Soncino, Chiari, Monte Chiari, as well as the old and new Orci. It was a great and joyful news, and in Florence, a grand celebration took place with bonfires and the ringing of bells.

On Thursday, the 30th of June, in the morning at the third hour, the news arrived in Florence that our people, that is, the Florentines, had defeated yesterday, which was the feast day of San Piero, the army of the Duke of Milan, that is, Niccolò Piccino, at Anghiari at the foot of the city towards the Borgo. They took about 3,000 horses from him, captured 16 leaders of the squadrons and many other men-at-arms, as well as 1,456 prisoners from the Borgo, and many other prisoners from other places. It was a great victory, and they took their standards. There was a great celebration, and rightfully so, because it was the salvation of Tuscany. Niccolò Piccino escaped with about 1,500 horses to the Borgo, and on the same night, he fled and crossed the Alps, suffering great damage and shame.

These are the two battles Decembrio is referring to, and they happened very close together - Soncino on Tuesday 14 June, Anghiari on Wednesday 29 June.

Note what Decembrio says at the end of chapter 69:

It was noted too that each of these signs preceded the foretold disaster by a period of six months, and that Wednesdays tended to bring particularly bad luck.

Anghiari was indeed a Wednesday, but it is the signs that happened on Wednesdays, too.

So, the lightning strike that destroyed the castle walls and caused a fire and mayhem must have happened six months before Anghiari, on a Wednesday. 30 December 1439 is exactly six months before, so that is the prime candidate, since Decembrio insists on "down to the very day."

That's as far as I've gotten. I haven't found any evidence that this event was recorded anywhere else, for instance noted by Florentines as a prophecy of the duke's defeat.

But it sure is a striking image for "The Tower."

Ross Caldwell wrote: 08 Jul 2023, 09:52

Phaeded wrote: 07 Jul 2023, 22:23
But most of this is immaterial - Sforza did not design trionfi, but was certainly aware of these programs that I understand as related series of art.

Excellent, thanks for the concise and detailed presentation of the Trinci-Sforza links. I'm sold.

Yes it's not important for Sforza per se to have seen them or not. They all just feed into the "heroic age" mood ...

Understanding you're not on board with with my two-phase development of trionfi, so with that caveat aside....the impetus for the proposed PMB expansion is the rediscovery of Marziano in 1449 and brought to Sforza/Marcello's camp, with a cleaned up version sent off to a third potential ally's wife (Rene). Sforza then sends for decks of trionfi from Lodi. Trionfi is undeniably on his mind and we should at least entertain the notion that he commissioned a new card game inspired by the Marziano, in which the gods are explicitly downgraded to "heroes" and thus the famous/worthy context, or rather Marziano is yet another series of heroes.

What I think trumps, pardon the pun, even that significant consideration is that in Sforza and his friend Marcello's minds Marziano's deck was most appropriate for Rene's wife, Isabella, through whom Rene will add the title of Lorraine to his holdings. But why a woman and why her, if indeed that mattered at all? Isabella was the eldest daughter of Charles II, Duke of Lorraine and Margaret of the Palatinate - and who were they? Charles II was the son of John I, Duke of Lorraine, and Sophie, daughter of Eberhard II, Count of Württemberg. Margaret was the daughter of Rupert of Germany and his wife Elisabeth of Nuremberg. We are back in the realms of German luxury cards, and they must at least must have understood Isabella lineage was from those courts with luxury card proclivities, hence her as the dedicatee. The Visconti-German matrimonial links via Bernabo Visconti’s grand strategy for alliances with the Holy Roman Empire (and France as well), partially in order to be invested with the imperial ducal title of Milan, succeeded with the following four daughters:

Taddea Visconti (1351 - 1381) married Stephen III, Duke of Bavaria (1337 – 1413), of the dominant House of Wtittelsbach, and was mother of Isabeau of Bavaria, wife of Charles VI of France. He opposed the Luxembourg and Tyrol branches of the family but that doesn’t seem to concern us here.

Antonia Visconti (c. 1364 Milan – 26 March 1405, Stuttgart) married Eberhard III of Württemberg (‘the Clement’) (1364 –1417, ruled 1392-1417), in 1380, ruling as Countess and Count of Württemberg, then a part of the Holy Roman Empire (became a Duchy in 1495). They had had 3 sons, the surviving one succeeding the father as Eberhard IV (1388-1419). The son Eberhard IV became engaged to Henriette of Mömpelgard in 1397 and married in 1407 at which time the county of Mömpelgard – although located somewhat remotely from Swabia just west of Basle, become part of Württemberg. After Antonia died, Eberhard III remarried (Elisabeth of Nuremberg) in 1412. At that time, it is likely that Eberhard III wanted to assure Visconti of continuing good relations, that his own half-Visconti son was still heir apparent, and also to congratulate Filippo of becoming duke in 1412, the same year as the second marriage.

Maddalena Visconti (1366 –1404) Duchess of Bavaria-Landshut by her marriage to Frederick, Duke of Bavaria-Landshut divided in 1392, when Bavaria-Landshut was reduced since Bavaria-Ingolstadt and Bavaria-Munich were created for his brothers.

Elisabetta Visconti (1374 –1432) m. Ernest of Bavaria-Munich (German: Ernst, Herzog von Bayern-München), (1373 –1438), from 1397 Duke of Bavaria-Munich.

Daughters married into the House of Wittelsbach (Stuttgart/Wurttemberg), all of which would have been known to Bianca as a Visconti royal (however much a bastard), allows for German luxury decks to have been understood the background for Marziano's own deck, if indeed Marziano was inspired by such decks in Filippo's possession. There is also the possible influence due to their suits of birds (Stuttgart pack, c.1430 has two suits indicated by birds ducks and falcons; the c. 1440 Ambras has three suits, counting the winged lures as bird-like); not to discount Filippo's own fondness for living birds.

Sfora's own deck, assuming he had a CY in his and Bianca's possession, also seemingly places the emphasis on the female spouse: appears on the Lovers trump, the subject of the Chariot, the gender given equal footing by having the Empress appear in addition to the Emperor (important since Bianca was the means of any future claims of the imperial duchy of Milan), Christ(?) looks to the female emerging from the grave in Judgement, and arguably is the "fishing" woman on the banks of the river that the mounted knight approaches in the "World" card. There are a lot of reasons then for retaining a female-centric theme for a novel Marziano-esque deck. If the structure of Dante's Paradiso, Moon through Saturn - each sphere assigned a virtue and exempli, was the basis of the Florentine ur-tarot then that too had for it's pilgrim's celestial goal a woman: Beatrice.

But again, such a deck already exists and is in Sforza's possession: the CY (or a CY). Why not just expand that with said requested heroes? That would require someone who understood the CY and if based on an original Florentine production then someone with that connection. The pestering new (to Sforza) humanist/courtier Filelfo would clearly understand it and know how to appropriately expand it with a series of "heroes." One could stick with Marziano's pagan gods theme but in how they were used by Sforza's court in their astrological guises as planets.

In my Dante-source theory, indeed the planets are explicit in the source material but unused in the ur-tarot: with the Pope resident in Florence, only the seven virtues and exempli or antitype make up the subjects; the planets are not explicitly referenced. You can find theological arguments (and even certain practices, such as the swearing in of condottiere), for and against astrology, even locally in Florence and in the papacy, but the bottom line is astrology was problematic, and with the Church Union having been recently hosted and its impact still playing out (e.g., the Coptic and Ethiopian churches were being courted to sign off, while the Byzantines tried to convince their populace to adopt it), best not to associate the allied and resident Pope - himself featured in the trionfi - with astrology. Not a problem for Milan in 1450-51, but again, best not to offend the newish pope even then (Nicholas V, also Filefo's friend), so replace the theological virtues. Adding thematic trumps related to the seven planets, sometimes in the guise of their "children", could easily be done in full accord with Dante's scheme. Throw in the Fool, who has precisely seven feathers stuck in his hair to match the addition of the seven planets (he is the mindless plaything - a symbol of the faithless mob that should be struck down by Jove's wrath - pushed about by the planets unfathomed influences), to demonstrate the religious uprightness of the entire series as a symbol of sin and ignorance of God, against the 21 Dantean-related subjects, et voilà: we go from 2X7 to 3X7+1 (or rather a "negative one").

Whatever influence Marziano had on the ur-tarot (and direct knowledge of it in Florence has still not been proven), I do argue the rediscovery of Marziano was the impetus of what became the PMB, albeit the 16 "heroes" were winnowed down to the seven planetary gods. Again:




Phaeded

Phaeded wrote:

The Visconti-German matrimonial links via Bernabo Visconti’s grand strategy for alliances with the Holy Roman Empire (and France as well), partially in order to be invested with the imperial ducal title of Milan, succeeded with the following four daughters:

"the Holy Roman Empire" was presented in the critical time of the 4 Bernabo-descendents - Bavaria weddings (1365 - c1390) by the Luxemburger Karl IV (reigned 1346-1378) and later by Roman king Wenzel (reigned 1376-1400) , who sold the duke title to Giangaleazzo (earlier foe of Bernabo) in 1395.
The Bavarian party were the Wittelsbacher and the descendents of Ludwig IV the Bavarian (reigned 1314-1347), who had not the same opinions as Karl IV.

Somehow the thread "Collection of 9 Worthies and other groups of famous men/women" was somehow hijacked by other interests. Well, no problem. I move the relevant texts to another thread "Collection of 9 Worthies and other groups of famous men/women" and you can give your discussion another name, if you don't mind.

Okay?

Ross Caldwell wrote: 08 Jul 2023, 10:59

Phaeded wrote: 07 Jul 2023, 21:58 ...Mainly I wanted you to underscore Jupiter's strong association with saetta/sagitta, per our old Tower/lightning arguments.

Interesting. I've sure argued about the meaning of the lightning-bolt before, but I can't remember our specific arguments to this point. My main contention that the tower was merely a prop for the lightning to strike was a crucial insight for me in 2013; it broke the Devil-Lightning couple, the last "narrative nugget" that allowed me to look at the meaning of the trump sequence differently. Not as a stately progression of one subject trumping the other symbolically, an "expanded Petrarch," but as groupings of related subjects for memorizing at the table. In this conception, the Devil belongs in the Fortuna-Fatum group, the "bad things." But I continue to acknowledge different ways of looking at it.

Changing to a topical subject, which is arguably (in theory) related to saetta iconography, here's a discovery I made from Decembrio.

Chapter 69 is "The signs that predicted the defeat of his armies."

It is a truly marvelous and amazing thing to record that every one of his military reverses occured exactly as had been foretold, down to the very day. Take the time he had two armies in the field, one in Lombardy and one in Tuscany. It happened that not long before, the walls surrounding the Castle of Porta Giovia were struck by lightning and the battlements were torn asunder. The stables then caught fire and the entire place was filled with smoke, while the horses broke loose and ran amok, all of which was clearly a sign that some great military disaster was looming. And in fact shortly after this came the news that both of the Milanese armies had been completely destroyed. (Ianziti p. 143)

....
These are the two battles Decembrio is referring to, and they happened very close together - Soncino on Tuesday 14 June, Anghiari on Wednesday 29 June.

Note what Decembrio says at the end of chapter 69:

It was noted too that each of these signs preceded the foretold disaster by a period of six months, and that Wednesdays tended to bring particularly bad luck.

Anghiari was indeed a Wednesday, but it is the signs that happened on Wednesdays, too.

So, the lightning strike that destroyed the castle walls and caused a fire and mayhem must have happened six months before Anghiari, on a Wednesday. 30 December 1439 is exactly six months before, so that is the prime candidate, since Decembrio insists on "down to the very day."

Really nice detective work there Ross.

Per previous arguments (you were for three levels of cosmological light - fire, sun and stars), I will say this safely falls into line with my argument, that if the historical lightning strike is connected to the "Tower" trump it connotes God's wrath, paganized of course as Jupiter tossing his bolts (as fire/arrows/lightning) about, as we find in Ps.-Mantegna, etc. Whatever possible failing or impiety on Filippo's part, God clearly showed his displeasure by striking his tower/walls and letting armies get defeated in the field.

Relevance to Filelfo as possibly the humanist behind the PMB: Filelfo was in Milan by 30 December 1439, and often dedicated odes and what have you on Christmas or New years, so the lightning strike happening in that holiday time period would have been especially inauspicious. I'm willing to hazard that specific event connected to Filippo stayed with Filelfo and is reflected in numerous of his Odes....

And Ode dedicated to Bianca asking for a commission (quoted recently in another thread) - Filelfo equates the fall of the Ambrosian Republics and its wickedness to Jove's wrath and allegorical lightning strikes, fearing he'll brought down with the mob who had dissed Filippo (almost as if the present troubles of plague and starvation in 1450 were a delayed response of God's part following ignored funeral rites for Filippo in 1447, a "blasphemy" mentioned again in another Ode quoted further below):

The same again in the Cremona trip Ode

Begging off Alfonso (= "he) and his main advisor from not campaigning against Sforza, which happens anyway in 1452 (against Sforza ally Florence at least):

"To Jupiter: An Invective Against False Liberty" is directed at the low-born rulers who took control of the Ambrosian Republic at the end and a reference to the neglected funeral rites of Filippo (one sees how the Fool represents the mob for Filelfo, and unlike the Giotto prototype that is plump, is made skinny as the mob was starving - the last lines copied here noting the cries for "bread!"):



Finally, in an Ode II.10 to Gaspar Vimercate thanking him for delivering Milan to Sforza, we have lightning and several birds references, including one to the Phoenix that makes me think Filelfo, at least, was familiar with Marziano's deck. [not in Google books scanned so transcribing here]}

[Gaspar's] intention was that Francesco Sforza should be celebrated for his merits throughout the whole world and for all time. Thus Gaspar sought out the stone that took back his sword, and the warlike bird of the god of thunder received the flashing rays of Phoebus Apollo's steady gaze. In the same way a flock of birds flying in high formation followed their king [like a Marziano bird suit headed by a king] all across the sky when he was reborn from the ancient body of his first shade, buried long ago.....

Gaspar...called on the citizens...to secure it from danger, though lightning had already struck it. Finally in an attack on the mad thieves, who now had afflicted the sad city of the Milanese with famine, looting, slaughter, plague and fire, he destroyed them....
(Robins, pp. 147-149)

Robin's related footnotes:


So what Filelfo has done, on one level, is having taken the actual lightning strike associated with heralding Filippo's defeat at Anghiari (especially odious to Filelfo as evidenced by his subsequent "On Exile" for the allied Albizzi faction in the Milanese army, following the defeat), and replaced that ignominy of his beloved/late patron with an allegorical strike on Ambrosian Republic Milan (as plague and famine), because the funeral rites for Filippo were not carried out (and the city was ruled by the ungrateful mob that denied those rites, who become symbolized as the 7-feathered Fool). Sforza's arrival to relieve that situation is clearly connected and why you'd find the Tower as such in the PMB.


Phaeded

Phaeded wrote: 08 Jul 2023, 19:25

So what Filelfo has done, on one level, is having taken the actual lightning strike associated with heralding Filippo's defeat at Anghiari (especially odious to Filelfo as evidenced by his subsequent "On Exile" for the allied Albizzi faction in the Milanese army, following the defeat), and replaced that ignominy of his beloved/late patron with an allegorical strike on Ambrosian Republic Milan (as plague and famine), because the funeral rites for Filippo were not carried out (and the city was ruled by the ungrateful mob that denied those rites, who become symbolized as the 7-feathered Fool). Sforza's arrival to relieve that situation is clearly connected and why you'd find the Tower as such in the PMB.

Interesting reading. You gave me the idea to check Filelfo's epistolarium to see what he wrote around this time, late December 1439 to early January 1440. They may be the closest thing to contemporary witness there is, if our hypothesis about the date of the lightning strike and fire is correct. He collected and published four letters from this time, 31 December to 11 January, numbers 24-27 of Book 3. He hints at things he can't say in letters, more serious matters, etc. Tantalizing. Wonderful details of Filippo Maria's annual comendandi trunci Vulcano - "presenting the trunk to Vulcan"! - and the gift-giving ceremony the next morning. But no explicit mention of a disaster.

It got me thinking that Filippo Maria probably explicitly forbade his courtiers from broadcasting the disaster, precisely because he took it to be a terrible omen.

Vulcan forges Jove's thunderbolts, so I wonder if this was some kind of propitiatory ritual. Perhaps Filippo Maria was not normally present, since Filelfo emphasizes that "not only was he present, but he directed the whole thing." Decembrio doesn't note either of these rituals, but he notes something else for the 1 January: "Every year on the first of January he would order that a horse of whitest white be finely arrayed and brought before him, a ritual that was supposed to bring him good luck" (chapter 67, "His superstitious nature and his fear of lightning," Ianziti pp. 134-139; this chapter may also allude to the Anghiari lightning omen: "When once lightning bolts struk the Castle of Porta Giovia, causing a fire to spread out in directions, he ordered his men to fight off the conflagration; he himself could not bear to look upon the flames, such was his horror of fiery lightning. After that incident he ordered the room where he slept to be reinfored with double-vaulted walls, to protect it against sudden and unexpected lightning strikes. As soon as he heard thunder in the sky he would hide himself away in a corner of this room, surrounded by his retinue of servants. He venerated the image of Saint Barbara for this very reason. In addition to which he had a gold medal cast that drew upon the power of the stars to drive away storm clouds."
Saint Barbara reminds us of The Tower again.)

XXIV.
Franciscus Philelphus Catoni Sacco jureconsulto

Institueram hodie redire ad vos: sed iussu Principis ante diem tertium hinc movere pedem non licet. Itaque monebis uxorem Chrysolorinam ne quid miretur turbeturve quod minus ad diem constitutum istue reverterim. Principi enim parendum est. Vale.Ex Mediolano. Pridie Kal. Ianuarias MCCCCXXXIX.

XXIV.
Franciscus Philelphus to Catone Sacco jurist.

I had intended to return to you today, but by order of the Prince, it is not permitted to move from here before the third day. Therefore, you will inform my wife Chrysolorina not to wonder or be disturbed that I have not returned by the appointed day. For one must obey the Prince. Farewell. From Milan. The day before the Kalends of January, 1439.

XXV.
Franciscus Philelphus Petro Michaeli equiti aurato ac jureconsulto

Cum idoneus esset oblatus nuncius, cui meas ad te litteras darem, visus es admonendus, id quod fortassis haud ingnoras te apud hunc humanissimum Principem nostrum valere auctoritate plurimum. Itaque tibi opera danda est ut bene promerearis; quod si feceris, permagnum es fructum consecutus. Reliqua tu coram ex hoc isto nuncio cognosces; non emim omnia committenda sunt litteris. Vale. Ex Mediolano. Pridie Kal. Januarias MCCCCXXXIX.

XXV. Francis Philelphus to Peter Michaelis, a knight of the golden order and jurist.
Since a suitable messenger has been offered to whom I could deliver my letter to you, it seemed necessary to remind you that, perhaps not unaware, your authority holds great weight with our most gracious Prince. Therefore, you must make an effort to deserve it well; if you do so, you will achieve great benefit. The remaining matters you will learn from this messenger; however, not everything should be entrusted to letters. Farewell. From Milan. On the day before the Kalends of January, 1439.

XXVI.
Franciscus Philelphus Catoni Sacco jureconsulto

Hesterno vesperi, cum universi aulici permagnaque nobilitas esset in arce Principis Caesaris huius nostri in coenaculo, cui est viridi cognomentum, celebrara est annua illa pompa commendandi trunci Vulcano, Principe ipso non praesente modo, sed solemne etiam festum in primis agitante ornanteque. Hoc autem mane, qui primus est Januarii dies, cum primum inluxisset, omnes in eamdem arcem et in idem coenaculum convenimus, et inde perpauci, quorum ipse numero sum adscriptus in coenaculum sumus adcersiti, quod nobilium adpellatur. Hic tamdiu expectavimus donec prandisset Princeps. Prandet enim semper in aurora, aut etiam aliquanto prius interdum. Nam qui paucissimi est somni, antelucanum tempus nunquam eum offendit in lecto. Amota vero mensa, continuo donata est uniersa nobilitas, aulicique omnes, quotquot in utroque coenaculo opperiuntur, variis muneribus pro dignitate cuiusque et gratia apud Principem. Dona sunt omnia anuli aurei cum gemmis, aut pyropis, aut adamantibus. Ego pulcerrimo anulo, adamante in pyramide surgenti, donatus sum, et eo quidem non mediocris pretii. Hunc qui pretiosior sit et melior, in auri metallis inveniri volunt, esseque primum omnium repertum in iis metallis, quae in Aethiopia sunt inter Mercurii delubrum, quem Graeci hermen vocant, et Meroen insulam, qui maior non sit cucumeris semine, habereque tantam in se vim ut iuxta magnetem positus ferrum ab eo abstrahi non patiatur, aut abstractum ad se se rapiat, ac tanquam auferat. Sunt praeterea adamantes aliis in locis reperti, ut in India qui aeque sit magnus ac nucleus avellanae, cui similis est qui nascitur in Arabia, sed aliquanto minor. Reperitur etiam adamas in Macedonia, in Philippico auro olim inventus, qui cucumeris semini est par magnitudine, ut alter ex antedictis adeo parvus est ut milii magnitudinem non excedat, a quo etiam nomen accepit, quippe qui cenebros sit adpellatus. Habetur alter in Cypro, quo colorem aereum repraesentans in medicamine plurimum valet. Est etiam adamas cognomine Siderites, quod ferrei sit splendoris, ceteris adamantium generibus ponderosior, sed dissimili natura, ut pote qui et frangatur ictibus, et adamante alio perforetur, eo qui Cyprius est. Et cum pretiosior adamas et igni sit et ferro indomitus adeo ut adamas adpelletur, cedit tamen hircino sanguini : hoc enim, si recens calidusque fuerit, maceratus, et ictibus tandem cedit, et incudibus; voluntque in adamante tantam inesse vim, ut et veneris vim auferat, et lymphationes, metusque vanos abigat, atque expellat ex hominum mentibus. Sed haec de adamante fortasse pluribus quam oportuit; cetera cum venero inter nos commentabimur; nam ego mihi videor fortunatissimus, quod huic me divino Principi sentiam esse carissimum; plura enim sunt, quae non recte litteris committantur. Cras ad vos redibo. Vale: ex Mediolano Kal. Januariis Anno a Natali Christiano MCCCCXXXX.

XXVI. Franciscus Philelphus Catoni Sacco, jurist.
Yesterday evening, when all the courtiers and a great number of nobles were in the palace of our Prince Caesar, in the dining room known by the name "viridis," that annual ceremony of presenting the trunk to Vulcan was celebrated, not only in the presence of the Prince himself, but also with great solemnity, which he personally directed and embellished. Moreover, this morning, the first day of January, as soon as it dawned, we all gathered in the same palace and in the same dining room, and only a few of us, among whom I count myself, were admitted into the dining room called "nobilium." Here we waited until the Prince had his breakfast. He always has breakfast at dawn, sometimes even a little earlier. For he is among the few who sleep very little, and the early morning hours never find him in bed. Once the table was removed, the entire nobility and all the courtiers who were waiting in both dining rooms were immediately presented with various gifts, according to each one's rank and favor with the Prince. All the gifts were rings made of gold with gems, either pyropus or adamant. I was presented with a very beautiful ring, with a rising pyramid of adamant, and indeed it is of considerable value. They claim that the most precious and superior rings are found in the metals of gold and that the first of these was discovered among the metals found in Ethiopia, between the temple of Mercury, which the Greeks call "hermen," and the island of Meroe, which is not larger than a cucumber seed. It is said to possess such power that when placed next to a magnet, it does not allow iron to be taken away from it or to be attracted to it as if it were taking it away. There are also diamonds found in other places, such as in India, where they are as large as a hazelnut kernel. There is a similar diamond found in Arabia, but it is slightly smaller. There is also a diamond found in Macedonia, discovered in the gold mines of Philippus, which is the size of a cucumber seed. Another diamond, among the aforementioned, is so small that it does not exceed the size of a millet seed, and it is called "cenebros." There is another diamond found in Cyprus, which has a coppery color and is highly valued for its medicinal properties. There is also a diamond called Siderites, which has a splendor resembling that of iron. It is heavier than other types of diamonds but has a different nature. It can be shattered by blows and pierced by another diamond, specifically the one from Cyprus. While the more precious diamond is resistant to fire and iron and is called "adamant," it still yields to the blood of a male goat. When fresh and warm, it is soaked and eventually yields to blows and anvils. They believe that diamonds possess such power that they can remove the power of desire and dispel vain fears and drive them from the minds of men. But perhaps I have spoken about diamonds more than necessary; we will discuss other matters when I come among you. For I consider myself most fortunate that I feel cherished by this divine Prince, for there are many things that cannot be properly conveyed in writing. Tomorrow, I will return to you. Farewell. From Milan, on the Kalends of January, in the year 1440 since the Christian Nativity.

XXVII.
Franciscus Philelphus, Bornio Salae jureconsulto

Desiderium de me tuum me non injuria plurimum delectat; est enim plenum amoris praecipui erga me; sed velim scias mutuum esse amorem nostrum planeque singularem. Non enim magis me desideras, quam desideraris a Philelpho. Dii malefaciant factionibus vestris, quibus divina omnia humanaque confunduntur. Iam iterum ad vos ivi eo sane consilio ut a vobis nunquam decederem, sed nescio qua, vel hominum pervicacia, vel fatali astro sit factum, ut bis inciderim in atrocissimas vestrae reipublicae procellas atque tempestates. Musis inter arma nusquam bene consultum est, sed Bononiae longe periculosius. Itaque habenda nobis fuit ratio et dignitatis et quietis. Ego iussu Principis mei adhuc ago Papiae, ad paucos dies Mediolanum petiturus cum universa familia, ubi omnia mihi parata sunt et ad commodum et dignitatem. Vale, ex Ticino III. Idus Januarias MCCCCXXXX.

"Franciscus Philelphus to Bornio Sala, jurist.
Your longing for me greatly delights me, without any harm; for it is full of extraordinary love towards me. However, I wish you to know that our love is mutual and truly unique. For you desire me no more than you are desired by Philelphus. May the gods bring ill fortune to your factions, by which all divine and human matters are confounded. I have now come to you again with the intention of never leaving your side, but I know not by what means, whether it be the stubbornness of men or the influence of a fatal star, that I have twice fallen into the most atrocious storms and tempests of your republic. It is nowhere safe to consult the Muses amidst weapons, but in Bologna, it is far more dangerous. Thus, we should have taken into account both our dignity and tranquility. By order of my Prince, I am currently in Pavia, planning to go to Milan with my entire family for a few days, where everything has been prepared for my comfort and dignity. Farewell, from the Ticino River, January 11, 1440."

All ChatGPT translations, slightly amended here and there.

Phaeded wrote: 08 Jul 2023, 17:35
Understanding you're not on board with with my two-phase development of trionfi, so with that caveat aside....

That's a big caveat, though. We can't argue theories when we don't even agree on the premises upon which the theories are based.

For instance...

What I think trumps, pardon the pun, even that significant consideration is that in Sforza and his friend Marcello's minds Marziano's deck was most appropriate for Rene's wife, Isabella, through whom Rene will add the title of Lorraine to his holdings.

But I don't see why we have to bring Sforza's mind here at all. It was Scipio Caraffa's insistence to Marcello that Isabelle would love this new game - which were just the cheap cards he saw! When Marcello was told of the existence of this other, luxurious production, it was his own idea to seek it out.

Who told Marcello about Michelino's deck? I suppose that could be Sforza, he had the opportunity over the years to encounter it. But there's no need to invoke Sforza, Marcello's explanation is sufficient.

So, even if in the realm of the plausible that Sforza told Marcello about Filippo Maria's "new kind of Triumphs," I'd have to leave it there, and not go further into speculation about Sforza's involvement in procuring it, the reasons why, and build a whole theory on such speculations. I take what Marcello says at face value. Why not? It was his first communication with the Isabelle-René couple, and it was an impressive gift, one which an intimate of theirs, Scipio Caraffa, assured Marcello that Isabelle would be delighted with. Finally he had found a way to appropriately introduce himself to them. And the emissary was Giovanni Cossa, a stalwart friend from Isabelle and René's days in Naples. If anybody is behind the scenes in this story, working the politics on the French side, I'd speculate on Cossa more than Sforza.

Ludwig Bertalot published on the 20 poems for the famous men in the Trinci palace.

Pages 64-77 here:
http://www.rhm.uni-koeln.de/066/Bertalot.pdf

They were originally published here - https://archive.org/details/anthologial ... 0/mode/2up
Numbers 831-847, 851, 854, and 855.

He included several other references to such cycles with accompanying inscriptions, in a footnote on pages 73-74:

Eine blosse Baedekerlektüre lehrt, ein wie beliebter Gegenstand in der Zeit des 'grossen Menschen' der grosse Mensch für die Malerei war. Francesco II aus dem Hause Carrara, Herr von Padua, der Gönner Petrarcas, liess seinen Palast, mit Darstellungen aus der römischen Geschichte (Jugurtha, Marius) und mit Bildnissen der römischen Kaiser und anderer berühmter Männer und zwar nach Petrarcas de viris iIIustribus ausschmücken (Voigt, Wiederbelebung I 431; Paul Kristaller, Andrea Mantegna, 1902, 16). Im Palast des Braccio Baglioni in Perugia (1460-70) waren Fresken von 23 uomini illustri mit tituli des Francesco Maturanzio (Archivio storico Italiano Ser. V, tom. XLIV 1909, 461-2). Die sala d'udienza dei Riformatori dello Stato della libertà in Bologna war mit den Bildern von sieben römischen Kaisern geschmückt, für die Giovanni Battista Refrigerio tituli in lateinischen Distichen dichtete (vgl. L. Frati, Gioru. star. d. lett. Ital. XII 1888, 345 und Studi ital.. di filol. class. XVI 1908, 133). Im Anfang des 15. Jh. waren 'in domo Artis Iudicum et Notariorum et in residentia proconsulis civitatis Florentie' (also im Florentiner Bargello) Dante, Petrarca. Boccaccio und Zanobi da Strada dargestellt; dafür verfasste Domenico Silvestri einen Gesamttitulus (vergleichbar R 831) von 8 Versen und 4 einzelne tituli von je 4 Versen (vgl. Mehus, Vita Ambrosii Traversarii. Florentiae 1759. pag. CCLXVI, CCCXXIX-CCCXXX; Bandini l. c. III 709, 714). Um dieselbe Zeit war die 'aula minor Palatii Florentini' mit einer imposanten Galerie von Berühmtheiten ausgestattet, in der die grossen Florentiner Dichter inmitten der Helden des Altertums standen; die tituli zu diesen Bildern dichtete der Staatskanzler Coluccio Salutati (alle?) (vgl. Mehus l. c. pag. CCCXIV); vielleicht der Hercules-titulus des Roberto Rossi in cod. Riccard. 1133 f. 45v und Würzburg M ch. f. 54r in denselben Raum. Im Ferrarcser Lustschloss Belriguardo, das im 15. Jh. als Sehenswürdigkeit galt, sah man 'duodecim Caesarum imagines expressas, aulam superiorem Romanis historiis et rebus gestis Herculis depictam' (cod. Marcian. 4451, lat. XlI 137, f. 86v).

"A mere Baedeker reading teaches us how popular of a subject the great men was in the time of the 'great men' for painting. Francesco II of the Carrara family, Lord of Padua, the patron of Petrarch, had his palace adorned with depictions from Roman history (Jugurtha, Marius) and portraits of Roman emperors and other famous men, specifically according to Petrarch's de viris illustribus (Voigt, Renaissance Revival I 431; Paul Kristaller, Andrea Mantegna, 1902, 16). In the palace of Braccio Baglioni in Perugia (1460-70), there were frescoes of 23 uomini illustri with titles by Francesco Maturanzio (Archivio storico Italiano Ser. V, tom. XLIV 1909, 461-2). The sala d'udienza dei Riformatori dello Stato della libertà in Bologna was adorned with images of seven Roman emperors, for which Giovanni Battista Refrigerio composed titles in Latin distiches (cf. L. Frati, Gioru. star. d. lett. Ital. XII 1888, 345 and Studi ital.. di filol. class. XVI 1908, 133). At the beginning of the 15th century, 'in domo Artis Iudicum et Notariorum et in residentia proconsulis civitatis Florentie' (thus in the Florentine Bargello), Dante, Petrarch, Boccaccio, and Zanobi da Strada were depicted; for this, Domenico Silvestri composed a comprehensive title (comparable to R 831) of 8 verses and 4 individual titles of 4 verses each (cf. Mehus, Vita Ambrosii Traversarii. Florentiae 1759. pag. CCLXVI, CCCXXIX-CCCXXX; Bandini l. c. III 709, 714). Around the same time, the 'aula minor Palatii Florentini' was equipped with an imposing gallery of celebrities, in which the great Florentine poets stood among the heroes of antiquity; the titles for these images were composed by the Chancellor Coluccio Salutati (all?) (cf. Mehus l. c. pag. CCCXIV); perhaps the Hercules title by Roberto Rossi in cod. Riccard. 1133 f. 45v and Würzburg M ch. f. 54r in the same space. In the Ferrara pleasure palace Belriguardo, which was considered a sight in the 15th century, one could see 'duodecim Caesarum imagines expressas, aulam superiorem Romanis historiis et rebus gestis Herculis depictam' (cod. Marcian. 4451, lat. XII 137, f. 86v)."

Francesco da Fabio, Palazzo Trinci, Foligno

Quisquis ad ista moves fulgentis limina gressus,
Priscorum hic poteris venerandos cernere vultus,
Hic pacis bellique viros, quos aurea quondam
Roma tulit caeloque pares dedit inclyta virtus.
Grandia si placeant tantorum gesta virorum,
Pasce tuos inspectu oculos et singula lustra.

Whoever approaches these shining thresholds,
Will be able to behold the venerable countenances of the ancients,
Here are the men of peace and war, whom once
Glorious Rome brought forth and matched in valor with the heavens.
If the grand deeds of such great men please you,
Feed your eyes with their sight and examine each brilliant era.

Romulus
Hic nova qui celsae fundavit moenia Troiae,
Urbem Romanam proprio de nomine dixit.
Infantem gelidi proiectum ad Thybridis undas
Uberibus fecunda piis Larentia pavit.
Ausus finitimas praedari faude Sabinas,
Fortem fortis humi postravit Acrona duello.

Romulus, who founded here the new walls of lofty Troy,
Named the city Roman after his own name.
Larentia, nurturing with her chaste breasts,
Fed the infant cast upon the cold waters of the Tiber.
Boldly daring to plunder the neighboring Sabine women,
He laid low strong Acron in a mighty battle.

Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus

Cui dedit hirsutus nomen venerabile cirrus,
Quintius hic ille est, rigidis animosus in armis.
Is quoque dum curvo sudans penderet aratro,
Ante boves meritum meruit dictator honorem.
Consulia obsessi partes defendit inertia,
Inde triumphalem conscendit agricola currum.

Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus,

To whom the venerable name "Cincinnatus" was given with shaggy hair,
This is that Quintus, courageous in rigid arms.
While he was sweating, hanging from the curved plow,
He earned the deserved honor of dictator before the oxen.
Defending the oppressed factions against inertia,
Then the farmer ascended the triumphal chariot.

M. Furius Camillus
Qui fuit en patriae quondam spes ampla ruentis,
Hic Senonum propria domuit virtute furores;
Vicit et opposito quos clausit Marte Faliscos,
Brachia fallaci religato in terga magistro.
Quicquid ubique truces bello valuere decenni,
Inclita, Velentes, accessit pompa triumpho.

M. Furius Camillus,

Who was once the great hope of a falling homeland,
Here he tamed the furies of the Senones with his own courage;
He conquered the Falisci, whom he enclosed in opposing Mars,
Their arms, deceived, were bound behind their backs by a cunning commander.
Whatever the fierce ones achieved in war everywhere for a decade,
Glory came to you, Velinae, in a splendid triumph.

Titus Manlius Torquatus
Inclita Torquatae dedit hic cognomina genti.
Vir ferus ante acies prostrati guttura Galli
Perfodiens gladio poscentis voce duellum
Abstulit aurati pretiosa monilia torquis.
Consulis et Decii bello collega Latino
Victoria nati maculavit caede secures.

Titus Manlius Torquatus

He gave illustrious surnames to the Torquatus family.
A fierce man, before the battle, he pierced the throats of prostrated Gauls
With a sword, he took away the precious necklace of the golden torques
From a Gaul demanding war with his voice.
As a colleague of the Consul and Decius in the Latin War,
The victory stained the axes of his born son with blood.

Publius Decius
Hic est qui vitam patriae devovit amatae.
Dum furor oppositos agitaret ad arma Latinos
Saevaque crudelem cecinissent classica pugnam,
Inter tela aciesque virum cuneosque pedestres
Candida sacrata religatus tempora vitta
Ante aciem moriens hostilibus occidit armis.

Publius Decius

Here is the one who devoted his life to his beloved country.
While madness drove the opposing Latins to arms,
And the savage war trumpets sang of cruel battle,
Among the darts and ranks of men and foot soldiers,
With a pure sacred ribbon bound around his head,
He died before the battle, struck down by enemy weapons.

Manius Curius Dentatus
Quid iuvat imperio populos rexisse potenti
Fulvaque Migdoniis ornasse palatia gemmis?
Quamquam civis inops, toto notissimus orbe
Hic fuit, egregio domuit qui Marte Sabinos.
Fregerit ipse licet fulgentis robora Pyrrhi,
Pauperim lato Samnitum praetulit auro.

Manius Curius Dentatus,

What benefit is it to have ruled over peoples with powerful authority,
And adorned palaces with yellow Migdonian gems?
Although he was a poor citizen, most famous throughout the entire world,
He, who subdued the Sabines with outstanding Mars.
Though he himself may have broken the strength of gleaming Pyrrhus,
He preferred the poverty of the wide Samnites over abundant gold.

Gaius Fabricius
Contentus modico tectique habitator egeni
Hic erat et sprevit devicti munera Pyrrhi,
Sprevit et oblatos, Samnitum munera, servos,
Respuit immensi locupletia ponderis aera,
Horruit infamem sclerata fraude magistrum
Pocula pollicitum regi miscere veneno.

Gaius Fabricius,

A satisfied dweller in modest shelter
He was here and rejected the gifts of defeated Pyrrhus,
He rejected the offerings, the gifts of the Samnites, slaves,
He refused the wealth of immense weight in bronze,
He abhorred the infamous master's wicked deceit
Of mixing poison in the promised cup for the king.

Quintus Fabius Maximus
Vir fuit iste ferox, qui torvus fronte verenda est.
Vir fuit egregius tardis quoque victor in armis.
Captivos modici quamquam pauperrimus agri
Exemit pretio Poenorum in vincula missos.
Hic quoque cunctando nisi Punica fregerit arma,
Nulla foret Latiis Romana potentia terris.

Quintus Fabius Maximus

That man was a fierce one, who was to be feared with a stern countenance.
He was an outstanding man, also victorious in slow warfare.
Although he was very poor in captured lands,
He bought the Poenian prisoners at a modest price and sent them into chains.
Also, if he hadn't broken the Carthaginian weapons by delaying,
There would be no Roman power in the Latin lands.

Claudius Nero
Armorum virtute potens Nero Claudius hic est.
Coniunctus Livio Picentia ad arva Metauri
Prostravit Libycas memorando Marte cohortes.
Fortunate tui, iuvenis metuende, furoris!
Ausus es ignari iacere ad tentoria fratris
Cervicem Libyci media inter tela tyranni.

Claudius Nero,

Nero Claudius, powerful in the courage of arms, is here.
Joined with Livius at the fields of Metaurus in Picenum,
He overthrew the Libyan cohorts with memorable Mars.
Fortunate are you, fearsome youth of yours!
You dared to lie in the tents of your ignorant brother,
Amidst the spears of the Libyan tyrant, with a neck exposed.

Marcus Marcellus
Tu primus Libycum Nolae sub moenibus hostem
Insidiis periture tuis, Marcelle, fugasti.
Cumque Syracosii quondam negaretur honoris
Pompa tibi, Albano gessisti in monte triumphum.
Praedonum deprensa manu venerandaque multis
Luctibus heu patrio caruerunt ossa sepulcro.

Marcus Marcellus,

You first, Marcellus, drove away the Libyan enemy
Perishing in your very traps under the walls of Nola.
And when the honor of a Syracusean triumph was denied to you once,
You celebrated a triumph on the Alban Mount.
Having captured the hand of pirates and with many revered
Lamentations, alas, your bones were deprived of a homeland burial.

Scipio Africanus
Ille ego sum, patriam Poeno qui Marte cadentem
Sustinui rapulque feris ex hostibus urbes
Hispanas, Hannonisque acies magnumque Syphacem
Perdomui et fractum totiens armisque repulsum
Hannibalem, victorque ferox mihi regna subegi
Punica et excelsas altae Carthaginis arces.

Scipio Africanus,

I am he, the one who in the Punic war
Saved the falling homeland, and carried off cities from the wild enemies,
Conquered the Spanish and the armies of Hanno,
And tamed mighty Syphax, repeatedly breaking
Hannibal and repelling him with weapons,
And as a victorious warrior, I subdued
The Phoenician kingdoms, and the lofty citadels of high Carthage.

Gaius Marius
Et genus et nomen merui virtute feroci
Rusticus Arpinas, bellorum maximus auctor.
Effera post Numidae quam fregimus arma Iugurthae,
Cimbrica praeclaros geminavit pompa triumphos.
Exegi civile nefas servilibus armis,
Et mea Sullanos fregerunt arma furores.

Marcus Caesius Scaeva
Igne calens belli mediaque in caede cruentus,
Pompeiana phalanx patulis exire ruinis
Dum furit et properat claustrorum frangere turres,
Scaeva timet Oceanus praeclari Caesaris arma,
Textum pampineae gessi sublime coronae.

Magnus Pompeius
Arma tuli quondam toto victricia mundo,
Qui pelago Cilicas et Pontica regna subegi.
Vis mea, quos profugus commoverat exul ad arma,
Bellorum virtute truces prostravit Hiberos.
At me post soceri civilia bella cruenti
Dextera Septimii Phariis laceravit in undis.

Marcus Porcius Cato
Cerne hic ora sacri semper veneranda Catonis!
Libertate potens animoque invictus et armis
Avius incerto peragravit tramite Syrtes.
Libertatis enim dulcedine captus amatae,
Ne sua servitio premerentur colla tyranni,
Fortia crudeli penetravit pectora ferro.

Gaius Iulius Caesar
Ille hic magnanimus, qui claris arduus actis
Non timuit generum nec inertia signa senatus,
Ne sibi Gallorum raperetur pompa triumphi,
Intulit invitus per civica viscera ferrum.
Vis invicta viri reparata classe Britannos
Vicit et hostiles Rheni conpescuit undas.

Octavianus Augustus
Quae mihi, sancte, dabit grandes depromere laudes
Musa tuas? iam pauca canam. tu Caesaris alti
Ultus es indignam memorando nomine mortem,
Actiaco et Pharias superasti in gurgite classes,
Tranquillumque tuis faciens virtutibus orbem
Clausiasti reserata diu sua limina Iano.

Tiberius
Claudius egregie vixit privatus et insons
Imperiis, Auguste, tuis; simulataque virtus
…..

Traianus
Caesareos toto referens hic orbe triumphos
Notus erat mundo quondam pietate gementi.
Inclytus extremos penetravit victor ad Indos,
Belligerosque Arabas et Colchos sub iuga misit,
Armenia Parthos pepulit Babylone subacta,
Et dedit Albanis regem, quos vicerat armis.

I'm really intrigued by Filelfo's brief allusion to Filippo Maria's annual offering of the trunk to Vulcan on 31 December/1 January (the day starting in the evening, so the night of 31 December is 1 January). Letter number XXVI here -
viewtopic.php?p=26011#p26011

It turns out that the classical Vulcanalia was on 23 August, so nowhere near 31 December. Anybody have any ideas what could be going on here? Another tradition?

It occurs to me that Filelfo could merely be classicizing the annual burning (Vulcan) of the Yule log (trunk), if that tradition were known then.