Weddings and Banquets: The Wedding of Maria de' Medici

Maria de' Medici, daughter of Grand Duke Francesco I Medici and Joanna of Austria, marries by proxy Henry IV of Bourbon, King of France.

Jacopo Chimenti da Empoli Le nozze per procura di Maria de’ Medici

A historic date because it marked a rapprochement between the two states, significantly reducing the debt the French crown had accumulated with Italian bankers; the dowry amounted to six hundred thousand ducats, despite France having demanded one million. It also made history, as would the 1606 wedding of Cosimo Medici and Maria Maddalena of Austria, one of the most sumptuous and spectacular banquets of the Medici house, described by Michelangelo Buonarroti, the young man who was commissioned by the Grand Duke.

The magnificence and fantastic scenography that accompanied seventeenth-century banquets had been described in detail in Renaissance treatises, such as Cristoforo de Messisbugo's work on the composition of the dishes and the general table settings. The Medici banquets were a testament to this scenographic and culinary pomp.

Everything had to come together to amaze the diners with a sequence of delicious dishes in a stunning setting that simultaneously underlined the wealth and power of the family.

For this purpose, the most brilliant and creative minds of the time were called upon to create and document this work which took on the characteristics of a spectacle for the gratification of the senses and sensibility, and of the body and spirit, in the search for "magnificence", recalling Greek thought, therefore in imitation of the banquet of the gods.

P. Rubens Matrimonio di Maria de’ Medici

Thus have come down to us, to name just a few: the print made by Matteo Grueter to commemorate the wedding of Cosimo II, the paintings by Jacopo da Empoli, which depicted the wedding of Mary in a precious gold-embroidered dress, and that of Rubens as well as various descriptions and songs, theatrical works, dedicated to the celebrations in honor of the spouses.

But let's go into the details of Mary's wedding.

Florence celebrates for ten days, but the highlight of the event is the wedding banquet that will continue until nightfall in the spectacular setting of the illuminated Palazzo Vecchio.

The entire display was directed by Bernardo Buontalenti and took place in the great hall of Palazzo Vecchio, the Salone dei Cinquecento. Here, in addition to the beautifully laid tables, the large sideboard in the shape of a French lily, created by Jacopo Ligozzi, a Veronese painter who became a Florentine, stood out for its display of over two thousand precious vases belonging to the family.

Sugar statues, inspired by hunting and mythological figures, were created by Giambologna and his pupil Pietro Tacca, some of considerable size, such as the 115 centimetre high equestrian statue of Henry IV, while the mirrors, supplied by Niccolò Landi, strategically positioned reflected, by overturning them, the images of the large hall and its furnishings.

Last but not least, the setting is enriched by the special folding of napkins in bizarre and animal shapes, while in the dining room, in keeping with the new custom, the valets move around to serve the drinks that will be brought from time to time to the guests who request them. Thus, small tables richly covered with precious tablecloths are set up to support trays and basins, placed, as prescribed by the treatises on banquets, in front of the sideboard of cold dishes, next to the orchestra that punctuates the pauses between the valets' comings and goings with its music until dawn. All the necessary equipment and organization of the drinks is entrusted to the bottler, who will have at his disposal glasses, shot glasses of every shape, crystal and silver vases, bottles, and decanters with various types of wine, from sweet to digestif to flavored, ready to respond to the diners' requests. All this is done on the so-called "mostre," the cabinets on which everything needed for the drinks is displayed.

La piegatura dei tovaglioli

And the menu?

Obviously as sumptuous as all the staging that preceded it.

Seventy-two courses of hot and cold dishes, cheeses, desserts, and fruit-flavored liqueurs. And then there's the wonder of the meats, treated, cut, and arranged in unique ways: veal pies shaped like unicorns, capons in pies shaped like cranes, and pheasants, quails, and peacocks. Finally, desserts and cheeses await.*

The celebrations continued in the following days, with theatrical performances such as Euridice at Pitti, which marked the birth of modern opera, until the bride's embarkation in the port of Livorno on October 16th, bound for Marseille. Mary met her husband on December 9th, and the wedding ceremony took place on December 17th.