Venice, Cita Excelentissima

by Labalme, Patricia H.; White, Laura Sanguineti; Carroll, Linda L.

• ISBN13: 9780801887659
• ISBN10: 0801887658
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-06-06
• Publisher: Johns Hopkins Univ Pr

Summary

When Venice was both a center of Renaissance culture and a gathering place for news from around the world, Marin Sanudo tried to write everything down. He was the finest diarist of his time, with a keen eye for the everyday and the monumental alike. Venice, Cità Excelentissima offers a broad and engaging introduction to Sanudo's detailed observations of life in his beloved city and the world it knew.This expertly translated volume glimpses into Renaissance life at a spectacular time when Venice was at the top of its game. Organized thematically, the selections offer a Venetian's viewpoint of the glories of high culture, the gritty reality and sparkling drama of daily life, the perils of diplomacy and war, and the high-risk ventures of voyages and commerce.Here, the work of the Renaissance's most assiduous historian is finally given the accessibility it warrants and the merit it is due.

Author Biography

Patricia H. Labalme (1927--2002) was a highly regarded scholar of Renaissance history and a tireless supporter of the humanities. Laura Sanguineti White is a professor of Italian at Rutgers University. Linda L. Carroll is a professor of Italian at Tulane University.

Table of Contents

List of Maps	p. xiii
Preface	p. xv
About the Translation	p. xix
Introduction: Marin Sanudo, His Life, His City, and His Diaries	p. xxv
List of Abbreviations	p. xxxix
Chronology and List of Doges	p. xli
Sanudo on Sanudo	p. 1
A Chronicle Is Born
Witness and Participant
Savio ai Ordeni
Sanudo's War
The Sometime Senator
The Nonvoyager
Keeper of the Record
His Family and Estate
The Scholar in His Study
The Historian
His Last Will and Testament
The Venetians Govern	p. 49
Doge Loredan's Decision
The Doge's Death
A Doge's Election
The Duke of Ferrara's Repentance
The Queen of Hungary's Amusement
Honoring the Duke of Urbino
The Duke of Milan's Visit
Celebrating the Sacred City
St. Mark and Venice
The Magistrato alle Acque
Fortifications
The Provveditore
Loyalty to St. Mark's Lion
Some Paduan Defections
Troubles in Friuli
The Magnificent City of Brescia
Crime and Justice	p. 113
With Impartial Justice
Treason
Murder
Sexual Crimes
Counterfeiting
Electoral Fraud
Domestic Strife
Problems of Imprisonment
Hindrances to Justice
Privilegium Fori
Social Clout and Political Expediency
Foreign Affairs: War and Diplomacy	p. 159
Pope Alexander and His Family
Pope Julius
Rome and the War of the League of Cambrai
Pope Leo X
Pope Adrian VI
Pope Clement VII
France's Charles VIII and Louis XII
Francis I
Emperor Maximilian I
Holy Roman Empire and Spain
England
The Ottoman Turks
Foreign Diplomats in Venice
Secretaries
Economic Networks and Institutions	p. 227
Sanudo's Experience
Andrea Gritti
Banks and Bankers
Antonio Grimani
The Arsenal
Vetor Fausto
Ships and the Sea
Pirates and Corsairs
Shipwreck
The Pepper Trade
Gifts for the Sultan
The Costs of Cambrai
The Prices of Power
"Everything is for sale"
The Fortunes of Alvise Pisani
Society and Social Life	p. 285
A Patrician Festa
A Patrician Wedding
Fashion, Taste, and Sumptuary Laws
The Grand Chancellor
Scuole Grandi
Scuole Piccole
Prostitutes and Servants
Famine and Freeze
Flood
Syphilis
Plague
Germans
Greeks
Jews
Street Entertainments
Rialto Fire
Games of Fortune
Religion and Superstition	p. 359
Celebrating a Political Treaty
Processions for Religious Holidays
Earthquake and Propitiation
Plague and Prayers
Chastity in the Convents
Miracles and Monachization
The Church of San Salvador
A Venetian Saint in the Making
Spirits in Chioggia
Witches in Val Camonica
Lutheran Influences
Monstrous Births
Humanism and the Arts	p. 427
Humanism in Venice
The Aldine Press
Public Education in Venice
The Concern for History
A Library for San Marco
The University of Padua
Literary Figures
Venetian Artists and Artworks
Arts, Artists, and Monuments in Rome
Venice's Public Monuments
Private Wealth, Private Art, and Public Pride
Theater in Venice, Venice as Theater	p. 485
The Patrician Home
Campi
Churches
Floats
Compagnie della Calza
Patrician Sponsors
Citizen Sponsors
Foreign Groups as Sponsors
Foreign Performers and Organizers
Cherea
Native Actors
Diplomacy in Play
Carnival
The Battle of Pavia
The Diaries
Money, Wealth, and Wages	p. 541
Money and Coinage
A Comparative Scale of Annual Wages and Salaries
Glossary and Terms	p. 545
Vocabulary Used in the Original
Governmental Terms
Weight and Nomenclature for Candles
Ceremonial Containers
Fabrics and Garments
Boats, Ships, and Nautical Terms
Musical Instruments
Bibliography	p. 553
Index	p. 583
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