House of Medici (Palazzo della Carovana) - Pisa, Italy
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member razalas
N 43° 43.173 E 010° 24.018
32T E 612795 N 4841677
The House of Medici was an Italian banking family and political dynasty that first began to gather prominence under Cosimo de' Medici in the Republic of Florence during the first half of the 15th century.
Waymark Code: WMZG5E
Location: Toscana, Italy
Date Posted: 11/06/2018
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member Olii05
Views: 5

The official tourism website of Pisa tell us about the Palazzo della Carovana:
quote:

""The medieval Palazzo degli Anziani was originally a tower that can be seen on the south on via Consoli del Mare. It was adapted and rebuilt by Giorgio Vasari at the command of Duke Cosimo I de’ Medici who had decided to found the seafaring military order of Knights of St. Stephen in 1558 and provide them with headquarters. The name Palazzo della Carovana derives from the training (‘carovana’) the knights had to submit to. Vasari visited Pisa only in 1561 to study the square and the position of the buildings, but before two years were over, the palazzo was ready and the knights were living in it (1562-1564).
Vasari designed a symmetrical building, achieving an effect of evenness and harmony by use of pictorial decoration and stonework that gave rhythm to the facade and masked the differences among the old buildings. Tommaso Battista del Verrocchio and Alessandro Forzori from Arezzo carried out the graffitto decoration on the facade (today vastly restored) based on sketches by Vasari. At the centre is the Medici-Stephanian coat of arms, set between allegorical figures of Religion and Justice, the work of Stoldo Lorenzi (1563). The coats of arms on the corners are by Giovanni Fancelli (1564).
The double marble staircase that replaced an earlier one was built by Giuseppe Marchelli in 1821.
On the upper part of the façade, inserted in niches, are half-busts of the Medici Dukes: Cosimo I, Francis I e Ferdinand I were carved between 1590 and 1596 by Ridolfo Sirigatti; Cosimo II was carved in about 1633 by the sculptor Pietro Tacca while Ferdinand II and Cosimo III were carved in 1681 and 1718, by Giovan Battista Foggini. Inside the palazzo, now the headquarters of the Scuola Normale Superiore, are several rooms with 16th century decorations."

The wikipedia tell us about the House of Medici:
quote:

""The House of Medici was an Italian banking family and political dynasty that first began to gather prominence under Cosimo de' Medici in the Republic of Florence during the first half of the 15th century. The family originated in the Mugello region of Tuscany and prospered gradually until it was able to fund the Medici Bank. This bank was the largest in Europe during the 15th century, and it facilitated the Medicis' rise to political power in Florence, although they officially remained citizens rather than monarchs until the 16th century.

The Medici produced three Popes of the Catholic Church—Pope Leo X (1513–1521), Pope Clement VII (1523–1534), and Pope Leo XI (1605)[3]—and two queens regent of France—Catherine de' Medici (1547–1559) and Marie de' Medici (1600–1610). In 1532, the family acquired the hereditary title Duke of Florence. In 1569, the duchy was elevated to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany after territorial expansion. The Medicis ruled the Grand Duchy from its inception until 1737, with the death of Gian Gastone de' Medici. The grand duchy witnessed degrees of economic growth under the early grand dukes but was bankrupt by the time of Cosimo III de' Medici (r. 1670-1723).

The Medicis' wealth and influence was initially derived from the textile trade guided by the wool guild of Florence, the Arte della Lana. Like other families ruling in Italian signorie, the Medicis dominated their city's government, were able to bring Florence under their family's power, and created an environment in which art and humanism flourished. They and other families of Italy inspired the Italian Renaissance, such as the Visconti and Sforza in Milan, the Este in Ferrara, and the Gonzaga in Mantua.

The Medici Bank, from when it was created in 1397 to its fall in 1494, was one of the most prosperous and respected institutions in Europe, and the Medici family was considered the wealthiest in Europe for a time. From this base, they acquired political power initially in Florence and later in wider Italy and Europe. They were among the earliest businesses to use the general ledger system of accounting through the development of the double-entry bookkeeping system for tracking credits and debits."

Bearer of Coat of Arms: Noble (aristocratic) family

Full name of the bearer: House of Medici

Where is Coat of Arms installed (short description) ?:
Palazzo della Carovana, the headquarters on the Military Order of Knights of St. Stephen that was created by Cosimo I of 'Medici.


Material / Design: Stone

Address:
Pisa, IT


Web page about the structure where is Coat of Arms installed (if exists): [Web Link]

Web page about the bearer of Coat of Arms (if exists): [Web Link]

Blazon (heraldic description): Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Logging requirements: Please upload your own personal photo of the coat of arms. You or your GPS can be in the picture, but it’s not a requirement.
Search for...
Geocaching.com Google Map
Google Maps
MapQuest
Bing Maps
Nearest Waymarks
Nearest Coats of Arms
Nearest Geocaches
Create a scavenger hunt using this waymark as the center point
Recent Visits/Logs:
Date Logged Log  
GURUGU visited House of Medici (Palazzo della Carovana) - Pisa, Italy 05/28/2023 GURUGU visited it
Nathalain visited House of Medici (Palazzo della Carovana) - Pisa, Italy 04/09/2019 Nathalain visited it

View all visits/logs