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The Splendour of Nannina de' Medici: A Story of a Renaissance Wedding
- Produzione Webidoo
- Sep 6
- 6 min read
Nannina married the humanist man of letters Bernardo Rucellai on June 8, 1466.
In Florentine history, and precisely in that critical period in which the Medici lordship was founded at the expense of the republic, Giovanni Rucellai does not hold one of the first places: but the study of secondary figures in history is not to be neglected: indeed it is very useful, because the men of that calibre, who did not reach the summit, but are above the
the masses, represent the social average with great approximation and therefore truly present in their individuals the qualities and character of their times.
The marriage of Nannina de' Medici to Bernardo Rucellai was a political marriage and has its place in history: apart from this, it was a great event for the house of Giovanni and therefore we see how it was celebrated and celebrated.
For this wedding, writes Rucellai, who left us Giovanni's biography, "a public celebration was held that lasted three days, and for this reason, in the square in front of the Rucellai palace, a platform was set up that matched the level of the loggia; there the young women and the leading men of the city gathered and danced, covered by an ornate canopy so as not to feel the sun's rays in the hot season. In the Via della Vigna the young knights were playing, and at the time of the wedding, honorable presents were sent to the newlyweds from the city of Volterra, from the community of Montecatini, and from many private individuals who were relatives and friends with them: they also performed music and other similar entertainments and every sort of splendor and magnificence, so that not only the relatives but all the Florentine people rejoiced."
Giovanni himself gives us all the details with paternal complacency: «I remember that on the eighth day of June 1466 we celebrated the wedding of my son Bernardo and Nannina, daughter of Piero di Cosimo de' Medici, his wife, who was married accompanied by four knights, namely Messer Manno Temperasi, Messer Carlo Pandolfini, Messer Giovannozzo Pitti, Messer Tommaso Soderini. This celebration was held outside the house on a platform 1.5 braccia high from the ground and measuring about 1,600 braccia square, which encompassed the entire square in front of our house and the loggia and the Via della Vigna up to the top of our house. It was decorated in the form of a triangle with a beautiful display of tapestries, benches and backrests, and with an upper sky of blue cloths to protect the sun, adorned with garlands throughout the entire sky, covered with greenery and with roses in the middle of the garlands, with festoons of greenery all around, with shields, half with the Medici coat of arms and half with the Rucellai coat of arms, and with many other ornaments; and above all, a very richly wrought silver sideboard; which was considered the most beautiful and elegant decoration ever made for a wedding celebration.
On the said stage, there was dancing and feasting and preparations for lunches and dinners. At the said wedding, there were 50 well-dressed and richly dressed women and likewise 50 very well-dressed young men ready for the party. Usually, 50 citizens were invited to each meal, including relatives, friends and the men of the city's leading figures, so that at the first tables, counting the women and housewives and the fifes and trumpets, 170 people ate. And at the second, third and fourth tables, many people ate, so that at one meal 500 people ate: - at breakfast, twenty jars of pinocchiati (1) and sugared almonds were brought out on the stage. The kitchen was built in the street behind our house, having it boarded up from Via della Vigna to the corner that leads to San Brancazio, where 50 people, including cooks and scullions, were working. Some of the wedding guests gathered on Tuesday, when the new bride left, in Vigna, moving from our house to the corner of the Tornaquinci, and then along Via Larga to Piero di Cosimo's house, accompanied by the new bride. And the new bride was given 25 honorable rings by the people who will be mentioned below. Other food items were donated, as is customary, by the townspeople and by special people, as will be noted below.
The new lady received a tip of 100 florins and 100 pairs of fat hands from Bernardo: we gave several servants and friends of the house 70 pairs of uniform-style cloth stockings. The new lady was given rich dresses: one of white velvet embroidered with pearls, silk, and gold, with open sleeves and lined with lattices worth florins, and one of velvet zetani, high and low, with pearls, very rich in fur and a good color, costing 7 florins an arm, with the sleeves lined with ermine. And in addition to the two dresses described above that were made for the new lady, she had a coat of white domaschino brocaded with flowered gold with a pair of sleeves of pearls worth florins.... and another coat of silk with sleeves of crimson gold brocade and many other garments of capes and journées of silk and cloth: she also had a rich necklace with diamonds, rubies and pearls worth 1200 florins - and a shoulder brooch with a large balascio and pearls that cost 1000 florins, and another for the head worth 300 florins, and a necklace of large pearls with a large diamond-pointed pendant worth 200 florins; and a hood embroidered with pearls and a snare of large pearls worth 100 florins and two pairs..."
No less than twenty rings were given to the new woman by various relatives and six by the groom, two when he took her off, two at the wedding, two on the morning that rings are given.
And finally the dowry and the trousseau. « The dowry was 2500 florins and as many confessed with 2000 florins on the mountain and 500 florins of donora, which donora cost 1500 florins but were largely worth 1200 florins; there were many beautiful and rich donora as will be said below, namely:
1 pair of very rich chests with backs.
1 bundle (2) of purple and pink cloth embroidered with pearls.
1 day (3) of Alexandrian satin embellished with pearls.
1 day of white and crimson dom with fringes and pearls.
1 fly aviary, embroidered sleeves with gold thread.
1 purple gamurra rosina with gold, silver and pearls.
1 Alexandrian zetani coat with brocade sleeves.
1 gamurra (4) of white cloth with sewn sleeves.
1 silk twill with white and red damask sleeves.
1 purple cloth gamurra with silk sleeves and with silver.
1 green and black double-ended twill with small birds.
20 arms of broad-grain Lucca cloth in a piece.
13 towels in one thread and a piece of thin diaper 4 arms of fine Lucca cloth for 1 gamurrino.
1 worked Renso shirt.
1 crimson headboard worked with pearls.
1 hat embroidered with silver and pearls.
1 Alexandrian satin cap embroidered with diamonds.
1 small book of our lady, historiated with silver fittings.
1 child wearing a damask dress embroidered with pearls.» (5)
In addition to this trousseau valued in the dowry, Nannina received a great quantity of things donated that cannot be counted.
That is, 93 arms of rich piece fabrics: "purple and crimson velvet zetani, green brocaded domask, Alexandrian brocaded domask, flattened crimson velvet, crimson satin." And more;
1 1/4 arms of crimson gold brocade.
62 handkerchiefs.
50 women's bandages.
16 shirts and 28 knitted diaper caps.
6 thin (6) renso headboards (7).
4 little bags with tassels.
7 pieces of ribbons of multiple patterns.
12 arms of fine bandages.
2 worked pockets of renso.
2 flower towels.
4 chest towels.
1 pair of Venetian-style pillows.
1 cap and 1 headpiece embroidered with thread gold.
1 floral embroidered hat.
1 silk cap embroidered with silver and pearls.
1 beret and 1 flowered damask cap for the night.
3 velvet and satin hats with pearls.
1 golden silver Virgin Mary.
1 little book of our lady covered in brocade.
1 strand of coral with silver and pearls.
1 crimson brocade belt.
1 silver bag with pearls and buttons, 1 Venetian brocade bag and 1 embroidered Flanders bag.
5 multi-purpose bags with pearls.
4 bag-shaped needles (8) embroidered with pearls.
8 pens (9) of various designs and 1 with pearls.
2 sewing rings, 1 gold and 1 silver.
1 pair of knives and 1 awl supplied in silver.
1 knife and fork supplied in silver.
1 pair of silver chisels and 1 pair of iron chisels.
3 pairs of scissors set in gold.
2 Catalan silk collars.
5 ivory combs of various designs.
1 penman supplied with several things.
4 pairs of gloves of multiple reasons.
From Rucellai, Giovanni, 1475-1525, A Florentine Merchant and His Family in the 15th Century, Florence, Tip. G. Barbèra, 1881
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