Duchess of Milan (75 page)

belle donne
Lovely ladies.

bellezza
Beauty.

bellissima
Exquisitely beautiful.

bello
Handsome.

braccio (pl. braccia)
Arm-span or arm’s length. The most commonly used Renaissance-era yardstick, measuring about 24 inches.

bravo (pl. bravi)
A professional or semiprofessional thug, usually in the employ of a more respectable citizen.

buffbne
Court jester; clown.

buttino
A game played with tarot cards.

cacapensieri
Shit-head; shit-for-brains.

cacarella
A noisemaker fashioned from a piece of hide stretched over the mouth of a pot. A string was drawn through a small hole in the leather to produce a crude droning hum.

cacasangue
Holy shit!

cacastecchi
Shit-ass.

camora
Originally a simple, tight-fitting dress worn directly over a chemise by women of all classes, by the late fifteenth century the
camora
had become a sumptuous, daringly formal gown that revealed ample expanses of the shoulders and breasts.

cantione alia piffarescha
A song written for
piffari,
large, oboe-like woodwinds.

Cara esposa
My dear wife.

carissima
My dearest.

carrozza
Carriage. In an age when even the wealthiest citizens often traveled on muleback, the carriage--particularly the relatively spacious and stable four-wheeled variety--represented the ultimate in luxury transport. Visitors to Milan frequently commented on the astonishing number of carriages rumbling through the city’s streets.

castello
Castle or fortified palace.

cazzo
Penis; prick.

che chiacchiera
What nonsense; what horseshit.

chiaroscuro
Light and shade. By using
chiaroscuro
to shade and highlight the human figure and other solid forms, Renaissance painters were able to produce startlingly realistic illusions of three-dimensionality, a revolutionary contrast to the flat, two-dimensional shapes characteristic of medieval painting.

cioppa
A rich overgown or coat with long, full sleeves, often lined with fur.

cognoscenti
“Those who know.” The most sophisticated taste-makers and connoisseurs.

condottiere
Mercenary commander. Mercenaries fought Italy’s wars, and command of a mercenary army offered considerable social mobility; in two generations, the Sforza, whose family name signified their military successes, went from shoemaking to a ducal dynasty.

confetti
Spun sugar figurines similar to modern cake decorations, but done with extraordinary complexity and artistry.

copiosita
Abundance. In reference to a work of art, this term expressed admiration for the richness of invention.

d’arriere
(French) From the rear, from behind.

dolcezza
Sweetness. With an implication of shallowness, lack of sophistication or grandeur.

en masque
(French) In disguise.

etalage
(French) Display; show.

fanciullo/a
Little boy/girl. Affectionate.

favola (pl. favole)
Tall tale; whopper.

festa (pl. feste)
General term for any elaborately staged celebratory party, banquet, or entertainment.

figlia
Daughter.

fioretta
In dance, a pirouette in which the steps trace the shape of a flower.

forestiera
Stranger; foreigner. Often a pejorative, suggesting un-trustworthiness or a disreputable character. In fifteenth-century Italy, a
forestiera
would usually be from another Italian state, not a visitor from across the mountains
(oltramontano
--see entry below).

frottola
A short, lively secular song.

Gesu
Jesus.

grandezza
Grandeur. In reference to a work of art, this term would suggest high-minded themes--mythological or religious--presented with lavish formality.

grazia
Grace; gracefulness.

grossa
Fat; obese.

guardaroba
A large, room-size closet, often furnished with credenzas and armoires and used for both the storage and display of expensive clothing, jewelry, and other luxury items.

impicatto (pl. impicatti)
Literally, hanged man. In the fifteenth century, hanging was reserved for common criminals or unusually despicable traitors (beheading was the most dignified form of execution), making
impicatto
a particularly biting insult.

intarsia
A mosaic created with different types of wood veneers.

intermedo
An entertainment provided between the acts of a play. Often more elaborately staged than the play--with singing, dancing, and instrumental music--
intermedi
were integrated with drama in the early 1600s, creating the first operas.

invenzione
Literally, invention; fabrication. An important concept in the Renaissance, which was characterized by striving for the new and original. Artists of all types were constantly challenged by their patrons to come up with distinctive
invenzione,
ranging from a new decorative pattern for a dress to a visionary plan for an entire city. This passion for the new was a profound departure from the medieval penchant for the tried-and-true.

leggiadria
Charm.

livre
(French) A gold coin, the basic medium of exchange in France. Roughly equivalent to the Italian ducat.

maestro
Master. Often used as a formal, respectful address for the most accomplished craftsmen and artists.

majolica
(English; Italian
maiolica)
Fired earthenware elaborately decorated with opaque glazes, often in detail approaching that of a painting.

meretrice
Prostitute.

Monseigneur
(French) The form of address for a high-ranking nobleman.

Montjoie!
(French) The traditional French battle cry. Derived from the medieval custom of erecting a cairn--a “mound of joy”--at the site of a victory.

moresca
A fast-paced, whirling, Moorish-style dance.

niente
Nothing; “zip.”

Nobilomo
Nobleman. This utilitarian term was the only formal title or address used by Venetian nobility, who prided themselves on the egalitarianism--at least among their own class-- fostered by Venice’s republican form of government.

Nonno
Grandfather (affectionate).

Nostro Signore
Dear Lord!

nove foze
The new styles; the new things (also
cose nuove);
the latest
invenzione
(see entry above).

oltramontani
People from “over the mountains”--i.e., the other side of the Alps. Strongly pejorative; the Germans and French were considered impoverished, uncultured, and ill-mannered.

palazzo
A large house or mansion. The ruling family of an Italian state usually lived in a fortified
castello,
while lesser nobility and wealthy commoners occupied
palazzi
(except in Venice, where the Doge lived in his
Palazzo
and the canalside homes of the nobility were designated as
Ca).

palio
A festive horse race run through the streets of a town. In Renaissance times the most famous
palio
took place in Ferrara on Saint George’s Day in April. Today a semiannual
palio
still draws thousands of visitors to Siena.

palla
A unisex court game played with a ball and bat. The object may have been to drive the ball through a ring.

pappatore
Guzzler; “tit-sucker.” A man who lives off his woman.

Per cap de Dieu
(French) By God’s robe!

Per mia fe
By my faith.

procuratore (pl. procuratori)
An “agent” employed by wealthy patrons to seek out and acquire art, books, musical instruments, and luxury items.

puttana
Whore, slut.

putto (pl. putti)
Little boy. In art and architecture, the cherubs often used as ornamental flourishes or structural devices.

puttino
Baby boy.

regola
Rule; order. Used in art criticism, this term signified the quality of precise measurement and proportion, valued by Renaissance thinkers in their search for scientific principles and the underlying order of things.

ribaldo
Rascal.

riccio sopra riccio
A velvet in which loops of gold woven into the plush silk pile are longer than the pile, giving an exceptionally rich effect.

scartino
A game played with tarot cards. A favorite with gamblers.

sciocca
Idiot.

Serenissima Repubblica
Venice, “the Most Serene Republic.” By habitually referring to their state with this elegant formal title, the Venetians emphasized that the republic itself was supreme, not the men who temporarily governed it. In marked contrast to the rest of Italy, where the state was subject to the whim of its individual overlord.

sforza
Strength; force.

sgraffito
Pottery with incised decoration.

Signor mio caro
My dear Lord.

simmetria
Not necessarily strict symmetry, but the quality of all the parts of a building or painting relating very clearly to one another, presenting an easily distinguishable pattern. The value placed on
simmetria
reflected the Renaissance desire to clarify, order, and reshape the world.

sorella
Sister.

stringhe
Narrow decorative ribbons attached to the sleeves or bodice of a dress.

stupendissimo
Truly remarkable; astonishing.

Tenez!
(French) Look here! The announcement traditionally made at the moment a tennis ball was put into play--hence the origin of the term “tennis.”

turca
A loose-fitting dressing gown.

uccelliaccia
Idiot; birdbrain.

unica
Only; unique; only one. Given the Renaissance emphasis on individuality, the designation
unica
was highly flattering.

vecchia/o
Old woman/man. Rarely used respectfully, and often a mild pejorative. The Renaissance was a rapidly evolving youth culture, and the elderly too often represented outmoded ideas and repressive, old-fashioned morality.

velluto controtagliato
A velvet with the pattern created by shaving the silk pile.

vestito
A long, very formal tunic or overgown.

vivacita
Liveliness.