Time travel in my city: Vicenza in the Renaissance

Photo 1: The church of San Vincenzo (late 1300s), patron saint of the city, incorporated into the subsequent Palazzo del Monte di Pietà. (The Monte di Pietà was the place where they brought their possessions as a pledge to have money in exchange, a last resort for the sustenance of those who could own something, obviously you had to own something, so the really poor did not have access to it).

Today I will tell you about my city. It is not really a physical journey, but a journey through time that I made while visiting the exhibition in the Palladian Basilica on the art of 1500 in Vicenza: “The Renaissance Factory” this is the title of the exhibition. For friends who do not know it, Vicenza is a UNESCO World Heritage Site for the villas and palaces built in the Renaissance by Andrea Palladio. But the question he tries to answer is: how did it become such an important city? What are the merits and what are the characters that have influenced the path of the city to become what we admire today? Obviously we were in the Italian Renaissance, where the arts flourished in every corner of the Bel Paese. But to make art flourish, it took the lords to finance the works and the artists to create them. And here some patrons also appeared in Vicenza, sometimes visionaries, but certainly influential in the choices of the rulers of the time, today we would call them influencers. Vicenza has never had a Lordship like Padua, Treviso, Verona, it was subjected to Venice and its laws, but it had a great entrepreneurial ability especially in silk processing, and in other sectors such as goldsmithing, a tradition that continues today. It should be remembered that in the years of the second post-war period, practically a good part of the Vicenza population was engaged in the orificeria and as evidence of this, one of the most important world fairs in the goldsmith sector takes place every year in Vicenza.

Photo 2: Interior of the Loggias built by Palladio to complete and support the Palazzo della Reason with the Hall of the Hundred inside, where the exhibition is hosted (around 1450)

Photo 3: The lion of San Marco, symbol of Venice, in the Salone dei Cento. Here justice was administered.

Photo 4: Note the ceiling, made of wood and copper, in the shape of an overturned ship.

Going through this exhibition led me to meet the names of many people after whom the streets and squares of my city are named, but sometimes they are just names with a hint of their profession: painter, sculptor, architect, scholar, bishop. “That’s who he was !!” How many times did I think about it yesterday inside of me, sometimes confessing to myself a profound ignorance of facts and episodes that everyone should know about their city. Let’s not exaggerate, I’m not saying I don’t know anything, but some episodes are quite difficult to study at school. Like that of the arrival of Bishop Ridolfi in the early 1500s, a relative of the Medici of Florence. Palladio and others on the idea of ​​Giangiorgio Trissino, transformed Vicenza into a large film set, building false facades on the main street of the city, hiding ancient buildings, and decorating the street with neoclassical statues. Many of these facades were built later in the years, thus building what is now called Corso Palladio, the main street of Vicenza, the ancient Roman decumanus.

Photo 5: The anointing of David by Paolo Veronese, kept at the Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien

Photo 6: Ascent to Calvary, Jacopo Bassano, The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge

Photo 7: Tommaso Rangone, Guardian Grande of the Scuola Grande di San Marco, Bronze bust and clay preparatory by Alessandro Vittoria

The artists who most contributed to the cultural growth of Vicenza were: Andrea Palladio, supreme architect. He was inspired by the classical forms of ancient Rome. It is thanks to his works that Vicenza has been included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. The painters Paolo Veronese and Jacopo Bassano, the sculptor Alessandro Vittoria. All four were linked by friendship and sometimes collaborated with each other for the realization of some works. It is interesting to understand how much the works were worth at the time of their realization. Back then there were a lot of coins in circulation and the authors of the show came up with a fun, but brilliant way to understand better. They turned purchase values ​​into pigs. Yes, you got it right, the medium-sized pig had a certain value in the 1500s and it quickly simplifies the calculation and makes it clearer, with comparisons even on what the salary or wages of ordinary people were like a worker or a waitress.

Photo 8: The cost of living and annual wages in 1500 compared to the cost of a medium-sized pig.

Photo 9: The cost of living and annual wages in 1500 compared to the cost of a medium-sized pig.

Photo 10: The crucifix in gold and rock crystal by valerio belli, very precious then and also today.

Obviously now some are priceless paintings that are exhibited in the most prestigious galleries in the world, but at the time the painters were earning very little compared to what one might think, it was the most poorly paid art. The architect Palladio was a little better, but he never managed to buy a house of his own, he lived for rent, in a modest house at the bottom of the current Corso Palladio, let’s say that he lived almost on the outskirts. Sculptors were a little bit better, like Vittoria, but they had odd jobs. The highest paid ever, the goldsmith Valerio Belli for his skill in working with rock crystal and in goldsmithing. A single work on display concerning a crucifix with its medallions made for Pope Clement VII.

Photo 11: Adoration of the Magi by Jacopo Bassano, the Barber Institut Birmingham

Photo 12: Roman votive medallion, later used as an architectural frieze. The antiques were worth a lot of pigs!

Photo 13: Paolo Veronese innovates the family portrait with solutions and poses never seen before, much more familiar and less formal. Portrait of Livia Porto Thiene and her daughter Deidamia. The Walter Arts Museum, Baltimore

The conclusion takes us to the Olympic theater, the dream come true of Trissino and his companions. Designed by Andrea Palladio who never saw the finished work since he died shortly after the start of the works. The work was completed by Vincenzo Scamozzi (I attended the Middle School named after him), who will also create the wooden scenography of the streets of Thebes for the first performance, the Oedipus Re. These sets have existed since 1585 and are not never removed, they have become the unmistakable face of the Olympic Theater, the oldest covered theater in the world. But of Vincenzo Scamozzi few remember his life. We could say that he was the most unfortunate architect in history. Most likely, if Palladio had not been born, he would now be remembered as one of the greatest architects ever to exist. He built many palaces and villas and practically spread Palladian thought throughout the world with a treatise that became the reference text for many architects.

Photo 15: The Olympic theater, designed by Palladio, the oldest covered theater in the world (1585) with the scenography, an icon of the theater itself, created by Vincenzo Scamozzi, a cultured pupil, also an opponent of Palladio himself, who however continued and spread also by expanding the Palladio’s work and thought. He will never be considered what he was, a great architect, perhaps the best of all if it hadn’t been for Palladio with his reputation that could not be overshadowed in any way.

@Giu_DiB @ErmesT @PattyBlack @LuigiZ @helga19 @TravellerG @AdamGT @DeniGu

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Da te e da @davidhyno ho imparato la bellezza di Vicenza, @plavarda .

Non è un caso che Vicenza sia uno dei più importanti distretti orafi d’Italia (mi hanno appena mandato il Badge per Vicenza oro, ma credo che quest’anno salto). Città colta e raffinata, che purtroppo come altre passa in secondo piano di fronte al fascino e il richiamo Internazionale di Venezia. Il che in sé non è male, perché Vicenza è una città per palati raffinati, che non amano avere troppa confusione attorno. Sarà uno dei miei primi luoghi di ritorno appena ci sentiremo più tranquilli.

Bella la mostra, le foto sono splendide

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Grazie @ErmesT , Vicenza è bella ma qualche volta sottovalutata anche dai vicentini che preferiscono i centri commerciali con conseguente abbandono del centro storico da parte delle attività. A volte mi chiedo cosa c’è di diverso tra noi e le altre città che a me sembrano molto più vive.

Un abbraccio, Paolo

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Grazie @plavarda per questo bellissimo post e meravigliose foto, mi hai riportato con la mente alla mia recente visita nella tua splendida città. L’ho adorata, anche se ho avuto solo poche ore a disposizione per visitarla. Quando ci sono stata io, il salone della Basilica Palladiana era completamente vuoto, mi ha fatto un certo effetto entrarci, facevo fatica ad attraversarlo! Così, mentre cercavo di abituarmi a quel vuoto enorme, praticamente camminavo raso muro per non cadere mentre ammiravo incantata quello che qui tu hai egregiamente descritto. Camminare sulle logge poi è stato emozionante anche se pioveva è stato bellissimo poter sbirciare tra i tetti e affacciarsi sulle piazze sottostanti. Il teatro poi mi ha lasciata letteralmente senza fiato. Però la storia dei maiali è la prima volta che la leggo! E tu saresti quello che non conosce la storia della sua città? La prossima volta dovrai essere la mia guida, sappilo! Perché prima o poi ci torno a Vicenza, magari quando c’è una bella mostra come questa :wink:

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Completamente a disposizione @PattyBlack !!! :kissing_heart:

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Another enjoyable read @plavarda , this time aboutVicenza. Funnily, when I first travelled in northern Italy, many times I’d heard the name Vicenza and I always thought of it as the local pronunciation of Venice :disappointed: It was funny to read how the cost of a medium-sized pig was in those days used as a benchmark for comparing the cost of living and annual wages. Of course this happened a lot through history and possibly still happens today in some parts of the world, when livestock is used for trading purposes. The art of 1500 in Vicenza is amazing and I love the title of the exhibition, “The Renaissance Factory”. When it comes to art there is certainly a lot to see and explore in Italy. I have seen quite a lot myself.

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Ciao @plavarda ,

Mi sento di dire che Vicenza è una delle città più belle d’Italia e anche fra le meno valorizzate. Ha tutte le caratteristiche per essere un’attrazione turistica a livello mondiale.

Molto particolare la curiosità che hai condiviso sull’utilizzo del maiale come unità di calcolo e di valutazione. Per noi oggi suona perfino bizzarro ma nel passato era perfettamente normale utilizzare gli animali come moneta di scambio, si pensi solo alla stessa origine dei termini “pecunia/pecuniario”, che derivano direttamente dal latino “pecus” (pecora/animale domestico). :slightly_smiling_face:

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@Giu_DiB diciamo che, in mezzo a tante monete che circolavano allora, era impossibile capire, per dei profani come lo sono anch’io, il valore delle cose e rapportarlo al costo della vita di allora. Ecco che in mezzo a fiorini, ducati, e tanti altri pezzi e suddivisioni di monete, gli autori della mostra hanno individuato nel “mezzanoto”, maiale non piccolo e non grande, la moneta di riferimento per farci capire qualcosa di più. Poi resta sempre la difficoltà di capire i prezzi con il nostro metodo di giudizio rispetto al metro di giudizio di allora, dove la materia aveva un valore nettamente superiore alla manualità e forse la parola arte non era ancora concepita se non come artigiano.

Per quanto riguarda Vicenza, forse GianGiorgio Trissino farebbe sue, anche se posteriori, le parole di Massimo d’Azeglio: Fatta Vicenza, adesso bisogna fare i vicentini!!

Scherzo, ma neanche più di tanto! Forse è il difetto di tutte le città d’Italia, ci vorrebbero sempre dei Trissino in ogni epoca, ma si sa, che ne nascono pochi! Cosa ne pensi Davide @davidhyno ?

Grazie per le tue parole, un abbraccio!

Paolo

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Dear @AdamGT Thank You so much! Let’s say that, in the midst of so many coins that were circulating at that time, it is impossible for the layman like me to understand the value of things and compare it with the cost of living at the time. Here, in the midst of florins, ducats, and many other coins and submultiples of coins, the authors of the exhibition identified in the value of a “mezzanoto”, neither small nor large pig, the reference currency to make us understand something more . Then there is always the difficulty of understanding prices with our method of judgment compared to the yardstick of the time, where the material had a much higher value than manual skills and perhaps the word artist was not yet conceived except as artisan.

Vicenza was born before Venice and was a Roman city known as Vicetia as early as the 2nd century BC. Venice has never been a Roman city having been born from the fugitives of Aquileia under the pressure of the Huns of Attila at the beginning of the 5th century AD. they were invading the Roman Empire. Unfortunately much of Roman Vicenza was lost, especially in the 15th century, following an urban restructuring, the Vicenza theater was definitively destroyed and houses were built in its place. Even today you can guess the place where the Berga Theater was built since the houses on it were built in a circular shape. In some cellars of these buildings you can still see the steps of the stalls. I’m waiting for you in Vicenza !!! A strong hug.

Paolo

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I found your reply to @plavarda very interesting @Giu_DiB as while I was aware of livestock being used through history as currency and I believe in some civilizations today it still plays a major part, but I didn’t know about theorigin of the terms “pecunia / pecuniary”, which as you have said derive directly from the Latin “pecus” (sheep / pet). How interesting :slightly_smiling_face: There’s always something to learn, I love it.

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Hi @AdamGT ,

I am glad to know you have found my answer interesting! Well, etymology has always been a passion of mine, since I was a kid when I’ve found one of my mother’s university books about Romance philology. I was also lucky, having a very progressive teacher who started teaching some of us Latin in 8th grade.

Do you want another interesting etymology on the topic? The English word “currency”, comes from the Latin “currens”, which means literally “running” (present participle of “currere”). Whether this word goes back to the times when the money was still running around in form of cattle/livestock or it was just referring to the very nature of the coins, that were meant to pass around from hand to hand (“currens” in Latin is also “flow” and “current”), I don’t know.

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Hey @Giu_DiB

This is all too fascinating and I can see how the origins of the word “currency” that you mention make sense, very interesting indeed. My mother didn’t have any Romance philology books but my father who speaks some 6 languages, and fluently, and when I was young always used to tell us kids the origin of words and I never forget when he first explained the origin of the word pharmacy and since then, while I have never formally studied it, I have always had an interest in this subject. Dad also introduced me to chiasmus, which I have an even deeper passion for. Of course, a well know example is JFK’s “Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country” however the one I love most is “Never let a fool kiss you or a kiss fool you” lol. I also love idioms such as “Good things come to those who wait” and others like “Stabbed in the back” and “A piece of cake” and love researching their origins. By the way, we also studied Latin in early grades when Mass then was in Latin and I have to add, there was something magical about the many Masses that I went to during the Camino. I loved, loved, loved each and every one of them. They were magical and from memory, I think the Mass at the Monastery of Roncesvalles was not only in Latin but also the older priests who formed a small choir also sang beautifully in Latin. Coincidentally, I only just mentioned Roncesvalles in another post…all too amazing.

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Ciao @plavarda !

Questa mostra è nella mia lista, ho visto che è aperta fino ad aprile prossimo e di certo non mancherò di visitarla!
Ho avuto il tuo stesso pensiero l’ultima volta che sono stato in città, a fine dicembre: nonostante le festività, le luci e gli addobbi l’ho sentita particolarmente vuota, quasi fosse apatica verso tutti!
Saranno anche questi ultimi due anni anni dove siamo stati costretti ad allontanarci dai locali e pure da noi tutti, ma sembra venire sempre meno questa appartenenza dei vicentini alla propria città!
E non penso che sia tutta colpa del cittadino, ma bensì della città ( o meglio di chi la amministra) che fa ben poco per attrarre e far sentire partecipi i propri residenti. Basta vedere pure questo Natale sotto tono in Piazza dei Signori dove negli scorsi anni primeggiava sempre un bellissimo albero di Natale, quest’anno invece due alberelli insulsi…
E le prospettive che vedo non sono affatto illuminanti caro Paolo, di nuovi Trissino o Palladio non ne vedo mica nessuna traccia sai!!!

Chissà cosa ne pensano @Giu_DiB , @ErmesT e @PattyBlack !

Forse un giorno…quando faranno una statua alla LocalGuide che ha portato la propria città in giro per il mondo! :grin:

Ciao a tutti,

Davide

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Ciao Davide @davidhyno , sfondi una porta aperta, ho la tua stessa visione della città e di come è amministrata. A mio avviso sono stati fatti errori madornali non so a che livelli di responsabilità politiche, quando sono stati aperti i nostri famosi centri commerciali che attirano tutte le attenzioni commerciali della popolazione e hanno fatto svuotare completamente il cuore commerciale che prima era il centro storico. Ho visto altre città (Treviso stessa @ErmesT ) e questo non è successo, sono vive con tutti i loro negozi e un sacco di gente per strada. Certo se lo scopo era avere una città tranquilla ci sono riusciti perfettamente. Speriamo non sia troppo tardi. Purtroppo nel 500 non c’era solo il “voler far schei” (trad. voler fare i soldi, diventare ricchi) come scopo primario, ma era far crescere il livello culturale per dare uno status più alto ai propri soldi. Ora non più, lo status è dato dalla macchina che possiedi.

Un abbraccio caro Davide, ka vedo dura per la statua alla Local Guide, magari a cavallo!!! :slightly_smiling_face: :slightly_smiling_face: :slightly_smiling_face:

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This is such a brilliant journey through time and art, @plavarda ! Is “The Renaissance Factory” a permanent exhibition? It’d be lovely to see all the paintings and sculptures and halls in person one day.

I also appreciate you giving us a bit more information about the birth of Vicenza, because, just as @AdamGT , I thought it was a local pronunciation of Venice. (Sorry!) Thankfully, it’s a beautiful city on its own that adds to the richness of the Italian culture! :blush:

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Dearest @DeniGu @AdamGT @davidhyno @Giu_DiB It is very interesting to discover that Vicenza is sometimes confused with Venice and I think that names can seem very similar to a foreigner. Davide we have to work harder with Local Guides to spread the name of our city that if it were in another country it would probably be one of the absolute pearls for millions of tourists, but having Venice close to us is a great problem !!!

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Ciao @DeniGu

you don’t have to apologize, it’s understandable, the names are very similar and if we wrote them in the local language they would be even more similar (Venesia, Vicensa). The exhibition will remain open until 11 April, but many of the paintings and wooden reproductions of Palladio’s works are visible in the museums and churches of Vicenza. I love the Chiericati civic museum very much for the beautiful natural light that some of the paintings have placed in the context of a 16th century building.

I’m waiting for you in Vicenza.

Paolo

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Hahaha, @DeniGu , @AdamGT

But I agree with @plavarda , Vicenza seems to be the local pronunciation of Venezia.

What is interesting is that, while nobody knows about Vicenza, Andrea Palladio style is one of the most copied (or, to be polite, that inspired) a lot of architecture around the world.

To be beautiful and unknown is something that Vicenza share with Treviso. But if I mention Prosecco or Tiramisu…

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ha ha ha @ErmesT I could comment on your post with some typical Venetian expression but knowing that the Google translator is also able to understand the Veneto, (as already tried with @ @helga19 during a wine meetup) I prudently refrain from doing so, I would not want them to withdraw the Guiding StarHav Ha Ha ha!!!

Paolo

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I understand your feeling very well, @plavarda

Like Marco Paolini said "the language doesn’t flow well, without some typical Venetian expression" :joy:

Well, we will let them learn this by themselves, when they will come to visit us :wink:

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