Lid from a Cassone with the Pazzi and Borromei Coats of Arms
| Artist | Apollonio di Giovanni (Italian, 1416–1465) |
|---|---|
| Title | Lid from a Cassone with the Pazzi and Borromei Coats of Arms |
| Date | 1463 |
| Medium | Tempera on panel |
| Dimensions | Overall: 21 1/8 x 72 in. (53.7 x 182.9 cm) Framed: 21 1/8 × 72 3/16 × 1 3/4 in. (53.7 × 183.4 × 4.4 cm) |
| Credit Line | Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University |
| Accession Number | 75.37 |
| This artwork is currently on view. | |
A decorated lid from a large chest. Back to back, two heraldic babies ride on dolphins and play trumpets decorated with two different coats of arms. The dolphins resemble wolf-fish hybrids and the coats of arms are red and green, and blue respectively.
This panel once formed the lid of a cassone, a wedding chest for storing textiles. It was commissioned for the daughter of Giovanni Borromei on the occasion of her marriage to Giovanni di Antonio de’ Pazzi. The two putti riding on dolphins are symbols of the Pazzi family, while the banners attached to their horns display the coats of arms of both of these powerful banking families. Most examples of Pazzi heraldry were effaced in 1478 after members of the family assassinated Guiliano de Medici, brother of Florence’s de facto ruler. However, as this panel likely formed the interior lid of the cassone, it remained unseen and therefore unscathed.
Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.
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"Lid from a Cassone with the Pazzi and Borromei Coats of Arms | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=75.37