1. This fresco was discovered in 1840, prompting the chapel’s restoration. It restored what centuries of political tumult had almost completely obliterated.
2. The figure in the front, dressed in dark red robes and standing next to the kneeling person, is usually the focus of attention. According to Vasari, it is Dante Alighieri, but this identification is now considered doubtful. I invite you, however, to look beyond this figure. Next to Dante stands first a young man dressed in blue. Then, next to him, we meet our guide, Brunetto Latini, wearing a red cap with an ermine band. Whether there is a true physical resemblance in this portrait is beside the point. It is something we simply cannot know for certain. What we do see, however, is, once more, his eminence and the regard in which he was held.
3. Who was this ser Brunetto Latini? For the moment, I will skip his personal biography. I will return to that later. Here, I would like to focus on his political career. The epithet ser already puts us on the right track. He was a notary, more precisely a notary-scribe attached to the Anziani. These Elders were the highest executive institution under the Primo Popolo. Although this scribal role was certainly not without importance, recent research into Latini’s life has stressed that this function should not be equated to a “chancellorship”.
As I have already stated, the Primo Popolo did, however, not survive a Ghibelline attack, led by Farinata degli Uberti. While Florence barely escaped a razing, Brunetto Latini had to join the ranks of the fuoriusciti, going into exile in France. Traces in the archives show him travelling to and from Arras, Paris, and Bar-sur-Aube, working as a private notary for the exiled Florentine elite.
The tables of fortune turned, however, again on the battlefields of Benevento (1266) and Tagliacozzo (1268). As a result of these military victories Charles of Anjou was elected as podestà of Florence and a party regime, led by the Parte Guelfa, was put into place (1267-1280). This new power constellation caused another exodus, this time of the Florentine Ghibellines, while loyal supporters of the new regime, such as Brunetto Latini, took up leading offices.
Brunetto acted, for instance, as a protonotarius (1269-70), that is head of the chancery, of the General-Vicar of Charles, Jean Britaud of Nangis (d. 1278). He was also elected as a consul of the guild of judges and notaries, the Giudici e Notai, in 1275. In 1280, we see him appear in the archives as one of the expromissores – the guarantors - of a peace treaty brokered between Guelfs and Ghibellines by the papal legate, Cardinal Malabranca. This ambitious attempt at city-wide reconciliation failed, however, and Florence shifted towards another political regime, known as the Priorate (1282-1292).
Once more, Brunetto Latini managed to take up high-level mandates under this regime, such as the role of sindicus – or city representative - in the formation of the Guelf league against Pisa (1284). He even occupied the highest office of prior in 1287, and he continued to act as a respected member of various city councils until his death in 1293/4.
4. Once you exit the Bargello, turn immediately left again, and stop at the corner of the building. Look up to see an inscription attached to the exterior wall.
Exploration tips:
1. Since the Bargello contains a world-class collection of sculpture and decorative arts, please feel free to explore its rich collection and return to the walking tour once you have satisfied your curiosity.
2. As you turn back into Via del Proconsolo, you may enjoy a break at the Fishing Lab Alle Murate, situated at 16r. This gastronomic pub is housed in the former Palazzo dell’Arte dei Giudi e Notai. Prior to its opening in 2006 a series of frescos was discovered and restored on the first floor, depicting, amongst others, Dante and Petrarca, holding books. Notice how this depiction of Dante (which has been attributed to Jacopo di Cione and has been painted between 1366 and 1375) is strikingly similar to the portrait in the Bargello, painted circa thirty years earlier.
Photo credit:
1. Bargello, Magdalen Chapel, Paradise - Maaike Napolitano-Rietrae, 2016
2. Bargello, Magdalen Chapel, Paradise, fragment of Brunetto Latini - Maaike Napolitano-Rietrae, 2016
3. Fishing Lab alle Murate, fresco (Dante Alighieri and Giovanni Boccaccio) - Maaike Napolitano-Rietrae, 2016
