2. THE FUNCTION, THE ARTIST AND THE CUSTOMER OF THE PITTI COLUMN

The Pitti column is made up of seven overlapping elements in rock crystal held together by a pivot in gold (Fig. 1). On the top, a little silver statue of Fame playing a trumpet can be seen and, on the bottom, there are six lions in agate which rest on a gilded silver pedestal. Although scholars date the seven crystal elements to the sixteenth century,Footnote ³ the statuette of Fame on the top and the pedestal (including the lions) are both later additions. In fact, the Uffizi inventory of 1704 (that locates the column inside the Uffizi Tribuna) mentions a statue of Fortuna with cornucopia and snake in her hands on the top of the column.Footnote ⁴ Therefore, we may assume that the statue of Fame was made after 1704 in place of the statue of Fortuna with cornucopia and snake. Also, the pedestal is dated to the seventeenth century because of its ‘baroque’ style and, especially, the presence of the coat of arms of the Pallavicini family.Footnote ⁵ The provenance from the Pallavicini family is the only evidence that we have about the Pitti column's collecting history before its appearance in the Uffizi inventory of 1704.

Fig. 1. Francesco Tortorino (c. 1512–c. 1572), the Pitti column, rock crystal (1554–65), silver statue on the top (eighteenth century), gilded silver pedestal (seventeenth century), h. 59.3 cm; Florence: Gallerie degli Uffizi, ‘Tesoro dei Granduchi’ (Palazzo Pitti), inv. no. 723/1921 (Arbeteta Mira Reference Arbeteta Mira2015: 71).

The Pitti column is particularly interesting not only for its refined and miniaturistic decoration, done by an excellent Renaissance artist, but also for being directly inspired by one of the most famous monuments of ancient Rome, namely Trajan's Column. As Zobi pointed out in 1853, crystal element no. 6 is shaped and decorated in the manner of Trajan's Column, showing a Roman triumph (Fig. 2). However, scholars have not explained why the artist chose this antique monument for its artwork, how the figural system was changed in comparison to that of Trajan's Column, and whether this antique model has a thematic connection with the general iconological message of the object.

Fig. 2. The Pitti column, crystal element no. 6 with the triumphal procession (su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo).

As most scholars seem to state (since the issue is only vaguely touched upon), the reference to Trajan's Column could be meant as merely an erudite quotation of a famous monument, due to the widespread all'antica taste during the Renaissance (Zobi, Reference Zobi1853; Kris, Reference Kris1929: 60–2; Agosti and Farinella, Reference Agosti, Farinella and Settis1988: 122–5). Two main problems have prevented us from understanding why Trajan's Column (and not another ancient monument) inspired the artist. The first is that full knowledge of the iconological message of the decorative system is lacking since many scenes on the Pitti column are not clear to scholars. The second concerns the function of the object itself: if we know the function of the object, we can better understand the reason for its figural decoration and inspiration drawn from Trajan's Column.

The presence of the little statue of Fame on the top has confused scholars trying to understand the function of the Pitti column. In fact, since the first analysis of Zobi in 1853 (until the study of Agosti and Farinella, Reference Agosti, Farinella and Settis1988), the Pitti column has been simply defined as a ‘triumphal column’. Although scholars do not discuss directly and openly the issue of the function of the Pitti column, the artefact seems to be considered as a valuable object without any precise function, excluding that of being a sign of power and imperial celebration. The fact that the Pitti column was an artefact for praising imperial power was easy to see owing to some images, including scenes of battles (Figs 8 and 19 further below) and the portraits of some Roman emperors and that of Charles V (Fig. 3). Therefore, scholars considered the Pitti column as a ‘triumphal object’ owned by an important person who, to some extent, was linked to Charles V.Footnote ⁶ However, as we shall soon see, the Pitti column had a different and precise function and, moreover, Charles V is not the main figure around whom the iconological message of the decorative system moves.

Fig. 3. The Pitti column, crystal element no. 2 with the portrait of Charles V (su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo).

The first important study of the chronology and authorship of the Pitti column was provided by Kris (Reference Kris1929) in his meticulous analysis of the main Renaissance Italian artefacts in glyptics. Among the hypothetical artists of the Pitti column, Kris suggested (Reference Kris1929, I: 61–2) the circle of carvers who worked in north Italy (especially in Lombardy and Veneto), such as Valerio Belli, Giovanni Bernardi and Francesco Tortorino. Moreover, according to the style and the reference to Charles V, Kris (Reference Kris1929, I: 60–2, 165) dated the artefact around 1525–50.

Considering the high scientific level of Kris's study, it is not surprising that, among the possible artists mentioned by the scholar, one (Francesco Tortorino) was indeed the artist of the Pitti column. At the National Archive of Milan, a notarial document — transcribed by Della Torre–SchofieldFootnote ⁷ — describes a mirror in rock crystal made by Francesco Tortorino (c. 1512–c. 1572) which perfectly recalls the Pitti column (for the text of the document see the Appendix to this article).Footnote ⁸ Thanks to Schofield's indication, Venturelli (Reference Venturelli1997: 146) identified the coincidence between the description of the archival document and the Pitti column.

According to this notarial document (dated to 17 September 1565), the crystal mirror was made after eleven years of work (1554–65) and consisted of six overlapping crystal elements. Some of these are briefly described and the description coincides with the scenes that we are going to see on the Pitti column:Footnote ⁹ in one crystal element (no. 4; Fig. 1), the life of the emperor of Spain (no reference to which emperor) is depicted; another crystal element (no. 6; Fig. 2) is shaped and decorated like one of the Roman columns (no reference to which); and another is shaped like a globe (crystal element no. 7; Fig. 1) and, on it, a mirror was located.

It is quite evident that, excluding the Pitti column, no other (still surviving) artefact in rock crystal has similar features. Moreover, the chronology, authorship and geographical provenance mentioned by the archival document coincide with the indications of Kris (Reference Kris1929, I: 60–1). Therefore, it is highly likely that the object described in the document is the Pitti column, as Venturelli has pointed out (Venturelli, Reference Venturelli1997: 140–1). The unique problem concerns the number of crystal elements: the document mentions six elements in rock crystal, while — as we have mentioned above — the mirror has seven elements. However, one element (crystal element no. 3; Fig. 1) is particularly small and has no figural decoration. Therefore, it is likely that the notary who wrote the document did not count it (or simply considered it as part of another element). Furthermore, the archival document records the donation of the Pitti column to the religious order of the Society of Jesus in Milan by the Milanese cardinal Carlo Visconti (1523–1565). According to the document, Carlo Visconti donated the Pitti column to the Jesuits (together with other precious objects) so that the Jesuits could sell them, and from the proceeds build a church.Footnote ¹⁰

Therefore, the notarial document is a fundamental source for understanding the function of the object (a mirror), the artist (Francesco Tortorino), the period within which the artwork was made (1554–65) and also the donor of the artefact (Carlo Visconti), who probably commissioned it. The first interesting point concerns the function of the Pitti column: it was originally a mirror and not simply a ‘triumphal column’ (in the sense of an object without any function). In the Renaissance, crystal mirrors were important regal gifts and were often made in the area of Milan. For instance, we can compare the mirror in rock crystal preserved at the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, made around 1575 in Milan and commissioned by Duke Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy (r. 1559–80) for Elector August of Saxony (Fig. 4).Footnote ¹¹

Fig. 4. Workshop of Saracchi family, mirror on a high rock crystal column, c. 1575, h. 76.5 cm, b. mirror 23.3 cm (base: 30.0 × 29.5 cm); Dresden: Staatliche Kunstsammlungen, inv. no. V 171 (Gruenes Gewoelbe, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden; foto: Juergen Karpinski).

Therefore, the Pitti column represents a clear example of an object that was often made in north Italy and commissioned by prestigious clients for regal and male personalities.Footnote ¹² Not by chance, as we shall see later, the column's function as a mirror and its decorative system suggest an important regal and male client for its commission.

Concerning the role of Carlo Visconti as the donor of the artefact, one issue has to be taken into account, namely whether he was also the recipient of the artefact (and not just the one who commissioned such work from Tortorino). We have little information about the life of Carlo Visconti, and his profile is not even included in the Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani. We know that he was born in Milan in 1523 and had important political roles (senator of Milan, ambassador of Milan to King Philip II of Spain in 1560) before having an important ecclesiastical career (bishop of Ventimiglia in 1561, member of the Council of Trent in 1562–3, cardinal in 1565) and that he died in 1565 (Chacón, Reference Chacón1630, II: col. 1676; Cardella, Reference Cardella1793, V: 81–3; Eubel, Reference Eubel1960 [1935], III: 41, 76, 195 and 334). According to the notarial document, the Pitti column was made after eleven years of work (from 1554 until 1565) and, in the same year that Tortorino ended work on it (1565), the artwork was donated by Visconti (17 September 1565, date of the notarial act). Although it is certain that Carlo Visconti commissioned the object (and likely agreed the decorative system with Tortorino), it is not certain whether it was made for him or ordered by him as a gift.

Venturelli (Reference Venturelli1997: 141–2) seems quite persuaded that Visconti commissioned the Pitti column from Tortorino for himself. In order to demonstrate this hypothesis, she takes into account one detail of the decorative system: a scene that would be a reference to one moment of Visconti's life, namely when he became cardinal in Rome (1565). In crystal element no. 4 (Fig. 1), we can see a scene located in the papal court (Fig. 16 further below): in the centre, the pope sits on his throne and, with his right hand, is giving the benediction to a kneeling man. The latter has a mitre on his head, like a bishop. In front of and behind the kneeling man, another three male kneeling figures can be seen (two next to and one in front of him): they are wearing clothes in the ‘imperial fashion’. The pope has next to him two men, probably two cardinals as the galero hat suggests. On the left and right sides, there are two crowds of spectators but, although separated, in the imagination of the artist both crowds would have likely surrounded the central scene. On the left side, one door is open and a landscape can be seen. Agosti and Farinella (Reference Agosti and Farinella1987: 122) have rightly noticed that the central building seems to be the Vatican according to the architectural project of Raphael and Antonio da Sangallo the Younger. For this reason, Venturelli (Reference Venturelli2013: 34–5) has supposed that such a scene might have reproduced the moment at which Carlo Visconti was made bishop in Rome by Pope Pius IV. Therefore, she concludes that the Pitti column might have been commissioned by Carlo Visconti so that the bishop could record the main honours that he had attained during his lifetime. According to Venturelli (Reference Venturelli2013: 34–5), the reference to Charles V (the portrait; Fig. 2) and the scenes of battle (Fig. 8 further below) would have been in praise of the imperial dynasty and, thus, an indirect reference to the diplomatic services that Carlo Visconti carried out for Charles V and his son Philip II. In short, the Pitti column would have been a personal object belonging to Visconti, on which the bishop recorded scenes of his life and praise of the imperial dynasty that had advanced his career.Footnote ¹³

Although Venturelli's interpretation seems suggestive, especially for the scene mentioned above (Fig. 16 further below), it reveals many problems. The first relates to the year 1565: in that year, Tortorino completed work on the Pitti column and Visconti became cardinal (2 March 1565). However, in the same year and a few months later (17 September 1565), Visconti donated the Pitti column to the Jesuits. If Carlo Visconti had commissioned the Pitti column from Tortorino as a personal trophy of his career, it is not comprehensible why he decided to donate the artefact to the Jesuits as soon as it was finished, after so long a wait and so much effort and cost. Moreover, if the column depicts the moment when Visconti became cardinal (March 1565), it seems quite unlikely that, in so few months (i.e. from March 1565 until September 1565), Tortorino changed the decorative programme in order to engrave such a scene of Visconti's life. One final problem concerns the prominent presence of scenes related to imperial power, while only one scene has a religious theme. Obviously, considering the ecclesiastical career of Visconti, we would have expected a wider number of references to that career, his faith and religious beliefs (such as his participation at the Council of Trent in 1562, another important moment in his life). Furthermore, as we will see later, crystal mirrors were usually gifted to very important political personalities such as kings and rulers, and for such a precious object to be made for a cardinal seems wholly inconsistent with such a custom.

As will later become clear, the decorative system shows us that, although Carlo Visconti surely requested the Pitti column from Tortorino, he was not its recipient. Rather, the Pitti column was intended for a very special and important personality who was strictly connected to imperial power. In fact, analysing all the scenes depicted in the Pitti column, here reproduced for the first time, we will be able to show how all of them are connected to the figure of Philip II and to one specific military success, the Battle of Saint-Quentin (1557).

3. THE DECORATIVE SYSTEM

As mentioned above, few studies and images of the Pitti column have been provided by scholars and, furthermore, the scenes engraved on the artefact are cursorily described (Kris, Reference Kris1929, II: 53–4). Such a lack of interest is easy to understand since, excluding the papal scene mentioned above and one scene of the battle (Fig. 8 further below), the meaning of the majority of the scenes is not at first clear.

Owing to the large number of images and their quality, we will now analyse in detail the scenes depicted, with particular attention to their meaning and, more generally, to the iconological and political message of the decorative system. The Pitti column has seven overlapping crystal elements, which we will describe from the lower one (no. 1) to the upper one (element no. 3 will be excluded because of the absence of any figural decoration).Footnote ¹⁴

Crystal element no. 1 is shaped like a trapeze, with six faces and a hexagonal base. Each face is decorated by one figural scene with an allegorical meaning that is not always easy to detect.Footnote ¹⁵ We shall analyse each face in a clockwise direction, starting from the scene that depicts Charles V seated under a triumphal arch and on a throne (Fig. 5). The six figural faces of crystal element no. 1 are divided by grotesque heads and surmounted by a frame with putti heads and garlands. Although the grotesque heads have no narrative meaning within the iconological message of the object, they come from the same all'antica repertoire that Tortorino used for his figural decoration (e.g. scenes of battles, Roman portraits, triumphal procession).Footnote ¹⁶

Fig. 5. The Pitti column, crystal element no. 1, Charles V seated under a triumphal arch, with a rudder and a globe (su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo).

The identification of the figure seated on the throne is clear not only because of its resemblance to the official portrait of Charles V (Hackenbroch, Reference Hackenbroch and Fossi1984, I: 436–43), but also because it is confirmed in the notarial document mentioned above. In fact, the notary specified in relation to another crystal element of the Pitti column (no. 4) that it ‘has been engraved by Francesco [sc. Tortorino] who depicted the history of the Spanish emperor’.Footnote ¹⁷ Therefore, we may also be sure about the presence of Charles V in crystal element no. 1. Here, the emperor is holding a rudder and has a globe next to his feet. The globe clearly sums up the power that Charles V attained in Europe and America through his leadership. Owing to the frequent references to Trajan in the Pitti column, we can wonder whether the triumphal arch might also be a slight allusion to the aedicula upon which Trajan's Column sits, as a further analogy of the piece with the ancient model.

The meaning of the next scene has not been identified by scholars and has been simply described as a ‘young soldier with a philosopher’ (Fig. 6).Footnote ¹⁸ However, scholars have overlooked the presence of a lion on the right side and a book on the ground next to the ‘philosopher’. Owing to such details, we may suppose that the philosopher might be St Jerome. No similar iconography of St Jerome with a soldier who separates the saint from the lion is attested, so we may suppose that Tortorino created it to express a precise meaning. The identity of the soldier on the right side is unknown, but we can exclude the possibility that he might be the young Charles V, since no such anecdote about his youth is attested in the literary sources. We may also exclude the idea that such a scene depicts an allegory, for instance two ‘virtues’ in dialogue (e.g. war and religion; or courage and meditation), since no similar iconography is even remotely attested. In fact, if the artist had wanted to represent an allegorical scene with a similar meaning, he would have adopted solutions that were easier to understand or iconographies provided by well-known illustrated texts (e.g. the Emblematum liber of Andrea Alciato).

Fig. 6. The Pitti column, crystal element no. 1, St Jerome and Philip II (?) (su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo).

Another detail that has not been taken into account is the presence of a building in the background, surrounded by walls like a castle or monastery. It might have an important role in the general meaning of the scene, rather than being simply a decorative ornament. In my opinion, considering the life of Charles V, the figure of St Jerome and the presence of the building in the background might refer to Charles V's spiritual retreat to the Jeronimite monastery of Yuste in Spain from February 1557 (Parker, Reference Parker2019: 460–89). At that time, Philip II was nineteen and, although he frequently asked for the support of his father in government (also praying for him to come back to govern) (Parker, Reference Parker2014: 50; Reference Parker2019: 460–89), Charles V remained in the monastery until his death in 1558. Charles's body lay in a crypt at Yuste until 1574 when his son moved it to the royal site of San Lorenzo de El Escorial. Although we are dealing with a hypothesis, it is not excluded that the artist depicted in this scene (Fig. 6) the spiritual retreat of Charles V to the Jeronimite monastery of Yuste and the arrival of young Philip II in order to confer with his father. Not by chance, as will soon become clear, in the Pitti column the main character of the decorative system is Philip II.

The following scene (Fig. 7) also seems quite difficult to interpret, although the subject is easy to identify. The so-called ‘Tempietto del Bramante’ can be seen: the building was erected to celebrate the martyrdom of St Peter and was designed by Donato Bramante (1444–1514), around 1502–10, next to the church of San Pietro in Montorio.Footnote ¹⁹ In the few studies devoted to the Pitti column, this scene is the one most often reproduced and mentioned by scholars, together with the image of Charles V (Fig. 3) and crystal element no. 7 (Fig. 2). In fact, these are the three images most often said to show the main message of the Pitti column: the triumph of Charles V and the new age of peace during his empire. Since the first study of the Pitti column by Zobi (Reference Zobi1853: 79), the ‘Tempietto del Bramante’ has been interpreted as the Temple of Janus with the doors closed (to mark peacetime). Kris has raised some doubts about this interpretation, although it has been accepted in some recent studies.Footnote ²⁰

Fig. 7. The Pitti column, crystal element no. 1, Temple of Janus in the shape of the ‘Tempietto del Bramante’ in San Pietro in Montorio (su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo).

Through a very creative interpretation, Venturelli suggests that the image of the Tempietto was depicted on the Pitti column for three reasons. It might have celebrated the power of the Christian Church, that of Charles V or that of the city of Milan. According to Venturelli, since the Tempietto was built where St Peter died, such a building would have celebrated the figure of the pope.Footnote ²¹ On the other hand, since the circular temple in Roman architecture was connected to the figure of Hercules, the Tempietto would have celebrated the figure of Charles V whose family had as its coat of arms the Pillars of Hercules with the motto ‘Plus Ultra’.Footnote ²² Finally, according to one not well-testified literary tradition, the city of Milan would have been founded by Janus and, therefore, the image of the Tempietto, meant as the Temple of Janus, would have been a celebration of the city of Milan.Footnote ²³ It seems quite evident that this explanation mixes and confuses different arguments, resulting in an extremely free interpretation.

Beyond and before any possible supposition, we have to point out that the meaning of the Tempietto is suggested by the artefact itself, through another scene of the decorative system. In fact, on crystal element no. 5, three scenes are depicted: two represent a landscape before and after a battle and the third shows the Tempietto with a man who is closing the doors owing to the cessation of fighting (Fig. 19). Although the two representations of the Tempietto on the Pitti column are scarcely different (i.e. a few architectural details differ), there is no doubt that both depicted the same building. Therefore, thanks to the decoration of crystal element no. 5, it is possible to state that, in the decorative system of the Pitti column, the Tempietto effectively has the value of the Temple of Janus. However, such a meaning of the ‘Tempietto of Bramante’ is not testified by any literary sources (Fagiolo, Reference Fagiolo, Fagiolo and Bonaccorso2009: 121–2) and, thus, Kris had some doubts about this interpretation.

From an iconographical point of view, the representation of the Tempietto (like that of other similar circular buildings, or tholoi) does not always have the same meaning. Sometimes such a building is meant as an image of the Temple of Jerusalem (e.g. Sposalizio della Vergine (1504) by Raphael; Predica di San Paolo (1515–16) by Raphael) (Faietti et al., Reference Faietti, Lafranconi and Farinella2020: 469). At other times, it simply alludes to the landscape of ancient Rome (e.g. Martirio di San Lorenzo (1565–9) by Bronzino) (Falciani and Natali, Reference Falciani and Natali2017: 290–3), until becoming a symbol for a pagan temple (e.g. Alessandro si inginocchia di fronte al Sacerdote di Ammone (c. 1530) by Francesco Salviati) (Levenson et al., Reference Levenson, Oberhuber and Sheehan1973: no. 186; Monbeig Goguel, Reference Monbeig Goguel1998: cat. 111; Pilo et al., Reference Pilo, De Rossi and Reale2007: 218). The only similar representation of the Tempietto — meant as the Temple of Janus — can be seen in Coecke's illustration depicting the Entry into Antwerp of Charles and Philip in 1549.Footnote ²⁴ Therefore, although there are few parallels that can confirm a recurrent value of the Tempietto as the Temple of Janus, we may conclude that at least on the Pitti column the representation of the Tempietto was used as an image of the Temple of Janus. In fact, the act of closing the doors of the building (Fig. 19 further below), on crystal element no. 5, and the image of the temple with the doors already closed (Fig. 7), on crystal element no. 1, have no other meaning than that of stressing the end of conflict because of the leadership of Charles V and Philip II. One doubt remains and it concerns the reason why the Tempietto was associated with the Temple of Janus. Since a similar value can be seen in Coecke's illustration, we may suppose that such a meaning was not invented by Tortorino, but rather it was already used in relation to the imperial Spanish dynasty. Although there existed a strong link between the imperial Spanish dynasty and the Tempietto of Bramante (Freiberg, Reference Freiberg2005), the representation of the Tempietto was probably associated with the Temple of Janus for the simple reason that it was erected on the Janiculum Hill (i.e. the hill of the god Janus). Another issue concerns the source from which Tortorino learned the meaning of the Tempietto as Temple of Janus. Probably, since other Flemish and German etchings that depict the Entry into Antwerp were used by Tortorino to represent the triumphal procession in crystal element no. 6, we may suppose that Tortorino found in Coecke's famous illustration (or maybe in another similar graphic source) the model of the Tempietto and its value as the Temple of Janus.

The following scenes of crystal element no. 1 are easier to understand in their iconological message. After the image of the Tempietto, a battle scene is depicted (Fig. 8). In the sky a Victory can be seen, flying with a palm branch in her hands. There are no clues in the landscape that allow us to identify a precise historical battle, and also the soldiers of the two armies are not distinguished through their armour and flags. Excluding one soldier who closely resembles the portrait of Charles V, any attempt to identify the scene seems to fail.Footnote ²⁵ The all'antica style of the scene is easy to detect and, considering certain gestures of the figures, some Greek artefacts have been considered by scholars as parallels, although they were not known by Renaissance artists (because found only in the last century) (Venturelli, Reference Venturelli1997: 144). The gestures of these figures (e.g. the kneeling soldier in the aspect of Charles V) depend on certain iconographical schemes that Warburg called Pathosformeln. Footnote ²⁶ According to Warburg's brilliant insight, such gestures are not always learned by the artists from the previous artistic tradition but, in many cases, they are ‘innate’ in the human mind since they express precise feelings (Cieri Via, Reference Cieri Via and Bertozzi2002; Settis, Reference Settis2006; Arburg, Reference Arburg and Kofler2009). For this reason, certain poses and gestures can be found among different cultures and ages. Some of these were expertly depicted in Greek and Roman artefacts, and thus the discovery of classical antiquity in the Renaissance ‘reactivated’ and spread such Pathosformeln. Footnote ²⁷ Of course, we might say that the figure of the soldier on a rearing horse in Figure 8 gestures like the soldier on a horse on the Trajanic relief on the Arch of Constantine or that of a figure on the sarcophagus in Palazzo Rospigliosi (frequently copied by Renaissance artists).Footnote ²⁸ Nevertheless, such an observation would not be enough to suppose a precise derivation of the Pitti column's figures from these models: in fact, the gesture of the soldier on a rearing horse is also attested in medieval hunting scenes (Smets and Abeele, Reference Smets, Abeele and Resl2007; Ławrynowicz and Nowakowski, Reference Ławrynowicz and Nowakowski2009). The situation is different in other scenes in the Pitti column where we will trace a direct inspiration from precise ancient models (e.g. numismatic profiles).

Fig. 8. The Pitti column, crystal element no. 1, battle scene (su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo).

The final two scenes depicted on crystal element no. 1 are allegorical. In the first (Fig. 9), a female figure is depicted in the gesture of holding some fruits in her right and ears of wheat in her left hand. On the left side, a shepherd is playing a flute while next to him are some sheep and, on the right side, a farmer is ploughing a field with a pair of oxen. Two trees in bloom and a river can be seen in the foreground. It is quite evident that this scene alludes to the wealth that Nature brings to humans.

Fig. 9. The Pitti column, crystal element no. 1, nature's wealth (su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo).

The next scene depicts a Victory flying among the clouds and over a city, holding a crown in her right hand (Fig. 10). In the scene, two little figures can be seen: both are going towards the city and one is running, while the other is riding a horse. We can imagine that both are going to announce the victory to the city. Since the Victory is playing a trumpet like the statuette on top of the column, it is not impossible that, when in the eighteenth century a statuette was made and placed on the top of the column, it was inspired by this scene.

Fig. 10. The Pitti column, crystal element no. 1, Fame (su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo).

From this analysis, it becomes clear that all the images on crystal element no. 1 express features that characterized the empire of Charles V and Philip II: peace (Fig. 7), glory in battle (Fig. 8), economic wealth (Fig. 9) and fame (Fig. 10). In this way, the scenes of Charles V seated on his throne (Fig. 5) and his spiritual retreat (Fig. 6) are surrounded by these four allegorical images in order to emphasize how Charles V and then his son Philip II were able to lead their empire to a new golden age. Indeed, the idea of a Roman empire restored is the main topic of the decoration of crystal element no. 2.

Scholars have not taken into account the relevance of the decoration in crystal element no. 2, except for Kris who was the first to recognize the portrait of Charles V among the viri illustres depicted.Footnote ²⁹ Scholars did not specify the identity of the other five men depicted in the imagines clipeatae. Nevertheless, the choice of these men is not casual, but reflects a precise ideological programme.

Thanks to the images of the Pitti column published here, it is possible to identify the physiognomy of these viri illustres and to collect them into one image (Fig. 11). Six emperors are depicted in the manner of three pairs (each one facing another). From left to right and from the top to the bottom, they are the following: Trajan, Augustus, Charles V, Vespasian, Marcus Aurelius and Julius Caesar. The first portrait — that of Trajan — immediately reveals Tortorino's iconographical source, namely a Roman coin (Fig. 12). In fact, in stone portraits of Trajan or those on historical reliefs, Trajan never wears the radiate crown. On the other hand, such iconography can be found on some dupondii of the Trajanic era, such as that of AD 114–17, minted in Rome (Fig. 12, no. 1).Footnote ³⁰ Considering other numismatic models, it can be seen how the other portraits too are quite precise from a physiognomic point of view (Fig. 12).Footnote ³¹ Only in the case of Julius Caesar (Fig. 12, no. 6), can we notice a slight difference from the ancient model: the profile is similar to that of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, but the hair ordered in strands does not characterize a precise portrait. In reality, coins with the portrait of Julius Caesar are few in terms of quantities preserved and types (Lichocka, Reference Lichocka, Kluge and Weisser2000; cf. Wallace-Hadrill, Reference Wallace-Hadrill1986). Therefore, it is not impossible that for the portrait of Julius Caesar, Tortorino used numismatic models of Renaissance artists based on ancient coins, as in the case of the numismatic production of Giovanni Cavino (1500–70), who coined a new portrait of Julius Caesar on the basis of ancient coins (Gorini, Reference Gorini1987).Footnote ³² Cavino lived and worked in Padua, and the area of Veneto had other important artists expert in numismatic portraits and glyptics, including Valerio Belli (1468–1546). In studying the Pitti column, Kris (Reference Kris1929, I: 60–1) recognized in the style of the artist an individual close to Valerio Belli. Thus, it is likely that the numismatic models that Tortorino used for the Pitti column — maybe through single drawing sheets or drawing-books — came from those circles of artists that in Veneto were particularly interested in and attracted to the all'antica style.

Fig. 11. The Pitti column, crystal element no. 2, emperors’ portraits (su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo).

Fig. 12. Coins used as potential sources for emperors’ portraits on crystal element no. 2 (American Numismatic Society, Public Domain Mark).

Before moving on to assess the reason why Tortorino chose these emperors, two more aspects have to be pointed out. The first concerns the position of Trajan's portrait within crystal element no. 2. If we consider the position of the emperors’ portraits with the lower scenes of crystal element no. 1 (Fig. 1), Trajan's portrait is the only one perfectly in line with a scene of crystal element no. 1, namely the scene described above that depicts Charles V seated (Fig. 5). The other emperors’ portraits are not in axis with the other allegorical scenes of the lower crystal element. Hence, we may conclude that Tortorino began with the portrait of Trajan and afterwards engraved the other portraits. Therefore, we may also hypothesize that the frontal position of the Pitti column (i.e. of the mirror) was the side with scene 1 of crystal element no. 1. In short, the mirror had to be originally seen as it is oriented in Figure 1. In this way, the ideological association of Charles V seated (scene 1: Fig. 5) with the portrait of Trajan in the imago clipeata (Fig. 12, no. 1) was further stressed.

The portraits of emperors are displayed in pairs on the Pitti column, but such a choice does not depend on a precise ideological relationship between these paired emperors. Rather, it may depend on the artistic expedient of variatio (i.e. the artist avoided giving the same orientation to all the portraits) or, more likely, it depended on the models that Tortorino took into account for engraving the portraits. In Renaissance palace portals/facades or artefacts, imperial portraits are often displayed opposite one another, as if they were acting as a sort of gallery of viri illustres. For instance, we can take into account the Renaissance Italian writing cabinet preserved at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London (Fig. 13) (Museum Number: 11–1891). The cabinet was a portable writing desk that replaced the function and the visual impact of the Renaissance studiolo. The three main scenes with the story of Gideon are bordered by pairs of Roman imperial portraits that describe the succession of emperors from the Julio-Claudians to the Flavians.Footnote ³³ These portraits are not a mere ostentation of historical knowledge; rather, they were a political reference which overlapped with the religious reference of the story of Gideon. Therefore, some scholars have considered the cabinet as a possible gift for Charles V during his second stay in Mantua (in 1532) or a private studiolo of Ferrante I Gonzaga (1507–1557) (Jordano, Reference Jordano2011).

Fig. 13. Cabinet with inlaid fall-front; made in three different kinds of wood (walnut; bog oak; holly); from Italy (Mantua/Ferrara); sixteenth century; Victoria and Albert Museum, London (Museum Number: 11–1891) (© Victoria and Albert Museum, London).

In Charles V's figurative propaganda, the presence of ‘cycles of Imperial portraits’ was also combined with religious imagery in order to connect the political and religious propaganda of the Holy Roman Empire (Brunetti, Reference Brunetti, Parada López de Corselas and Palacios Mendez2020b). The V&A's cabinet allows us also to introduce the reason why five such Roman portraits are depicted on the Pitti column. Considering Charles V's figurative propaganda on Renaissance palace portals/facades, the portrait of Charles V is often associated with specific Roman emperors. Julius Caesar and Augustus are always present to stress the beginning of the Roman imperial dynasty that, over the centuries, arrived at Charles V's. Then, in the ‘cycles of Imperial portraits’ related to Charles V's propaganda, the main emperors that opened new dynasties (e.g. Vespasian) and, mostly, Roman emperors of Spanish origin (e.g. Trajan and Marcus Aurelius) are depicted. Trajan is frequently associated with Charles V not only because of their common Spanish origins, but also due to their great military achievements from West to East. One example among manyFootnote ³⁴ is the ‘portrait series’ of Roman emperors and Spanish viri illustres on the facade of the convent of San Marco in León (Spain), dated to the middle of the sixteenth century (Núñez Rodríguez, Reference Núñez Rodríguez2006). Among the 24 portraits of the facade, we can see the portraits of Trajan, Charles V and Augustus (Fig. 14).

Fig. 14. From left to right: Trajan, Charles V, Augustus. Facade of the convento San Marco in León (Spain), mid-sixteenth century (kindly provided by Dr Manuel Parada López de Corselas).

In conclusion, considering crystal element no. 2, it becomes clear how the choice of the emperors’ portraits by Tortorino is not casual or due to the personal choice of the artist. Rather, it is connected to the common figural propaganda used to celebrate Charles V and Philip II. The emperors depicted on crystal element no. 2 are those who inaugurated the Julio-Claudian dynasty (Julius Caesar, Augustus), the Flavian one (Vespasian) and the Nerva–Antonine dynasty, with particular attention to the main emperors of this long dynasty that have more similarities with Charles V–Philip II (i.e. Trajan, Marcus Aurelius). Although we do not know who (if anyone) was responsible for that strong political connection between Charles V, Philip II and the Spanish Roman emperors, obviously many ancient literary sources could have enhanced this political connection (e.g. Orosius — 7.9, 11–12, 34 — a Spaniard himself who underlines Trajan's Spanish ancestry).Footnote ³⁵

Crystal element no. 4 shows the most detailed and elegant decoration of the entire column: here, Tortorino applied all his skills and competence. In the notarial document, crystal element no. 4 is mentioned as the ‘third element’ and the notary wrote an unexpected note. It is written that crystal element no. 4 depicts the life of the ‘emperor of Spain’ and was made by Francesco Tortorino: ‘il terzo è storiato di mano del medesimo Francesco a cavoni l'historia toccante il re di Spagna’.Footnote ³⁶ This passage is important for two reasons: the first concerns the topic depicted (i.e. scenes from the lives of Charles V and Philip II); second, from this passage of the document, we may assume that, although Tortorino was the artist of crystal element no. 4 (‘di mano del medesimo Francesco’), there is no guarantee that he was the only artist who worked on the other crystal elements. Otherwise, it would have made no sense to specify that the decoration of crystal element no. 4 was done by him alone. Thus, we have to consider the possibility that Tortorino was not the only one to decorate the Pitti column, but that he might have been helped by some collaborators.

Two scenes appear on crystal element no. 4 and, as earlier scholars pointed out (Zobi, Reference Zobi1853: 80–1; Kris, Reference Kris1929, I: 60–1), one is set at the papal court and the other at the imperial court. We will start from the scene at the imperial court since it would have been the first to be viewed, according to the original display of the mirror: it is located immediately above the portrait of Trajan on crystal element no. 2.

Since the scenes each occupy half of the circular crystal element, no image can capture both scenes entirely. Moreover, the transparency of the material makes it difficult to see all the details. Thanks to two merged photos and the drawing of the iconography, the observation of some details becomes easier and, thus, we can note some details never mentioned before by scholars. As the quotation from Robert at the beginning of this article states, also through the drawing, the analysis and interpretation of the iconography become clearer to the viewer.

In the scene at the imperial court (Fig. 15), we can see at the centre an emperor who is sitting on his throne and is giving a sword to another armed man. On the left side, two crowds are watching the scene: from a balcony and from ground level. On the right side of the scene, another group of people is watching the central scene. Next to the emperor sitting on the throne and giving the sword to the kneeling man, an imperial couple is sitting. Considering these two seated figures, one is clearly an armed man. Although the other seated figure might seem to be a man, we can recognize the breasts and the long dress according to female fashion. Therefore, we must conclude that this seated figure is a woman. Obviously, we have to take into account that, since the dimension of crystal element no. 4 is approximately 4 cm, it was not always easy for the artist to reach such a realistic level of detail that allowed differentiation between the physiognomies of faces.

Fig. 15. The Pitti column, crystal element no. 4: Philip II receiving command of the army against the French, in the presence of Duke Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy (1528–1580) and his wife Margaret of France, Duchess of Berry (1523–1574) (su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo); drawing of the scene is made by Marco Brunetti.

On the other hand, the artist is very precise in depicting some elements that are crucial for understanding the meaning of the scene. Through our drawing of the scene, it has been possible to recognize some details: for instance, concerning the crowd at ground level, we can see the standards of the Roman legion and, thus, we can suppose that this crowd is precisely an army ready to leave for battle. Other details concern the symbols of the imperial family of Charles V, which are located above the open door. Here, we can observe the double-headed eagle, the symbol of the Holy Roman Empire, and the Pillars of Hercules with the wrapped drapes (the symbol of the Spanish dynasty of Charles V). In this way is confirmed what the notarial document states about the decoration of crystal element no. 4, that it depicts the life of the ‘Spanish emperor’.

Considering the portrait of Charles V (Fig. 3), we may be quite sure in identifying Charles V in the figure of the seated emperor giving a sword to the kneeling figure. There are more doubts in relation to the identification of the receiver of the sword. However, also in this case, the artist seems to have left a clue. Next to Charles V, Tortorino has depicted an empty sella curulis, the chair that, from the Roman era, alluded to the important prestigious responsibilities that honoured a special individual. Of course, the hypothesis that such detail may allude to Philip II, heir of Charles V, seems inevitable. In this way, Philip II would have left the sella curulis next to his father in order to receive the honour of leading the army that is waiting on the left side. In fact, as we will see later, Philip II and his victory in the Battle of Saint-Quentin (1557) are the focus of the decoration of the upper crystal element.

In the scene at the imperial court, Tortorino has left another clue for the recognition of the seated couple, namely the coat of arms at their feet. The coat of arms is that of the Savoy family and, considering the relevance that the Battle of Saint-Quentin has in the upper crystal element, we may suppose that the couple may be Duke Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy (1528–1580) and his wife Margaret of France, Duchess of Berry (1523–1574). While scholars have not provided interpretations for this scene, thanks to the iconographic clues mentioned above, it is possible to recognize the scene of Charles V giving command of the army to his son Philip II in the presence of the Savoy family. As we will see later, such a moment has a precise and important meaning within the decorative system of the Pitti column.

In the scene at the papal court, we can recognize a similar division of the space (Fig. 16). Here, on the left-hand side, we can see a crowd which is looking towards the centre of the scene and, in the background, a city landscape. As already mentioned, Agosti and Farinella (Reference Agosti and Farinella1987: 122) have noticed that the building seems to be the Vatican according to the architectural project of Raphael and Antonio da Sangallo the Younger. At the centre of the scene, the pope sits on his throne and two men (probably two cardinals as the galero hat suggests) are next to him. The pope is giving his benediction to a kneeling man who has a mitre on his head, typical of bishops, and, next to him, there are two kneeling men, dressed in imperial fashion. On the right-hand side, another kneeling man dressed according to imperial fashion can be seen. Next to him, an open door shows a crowd that is looking towards the centre of the scene. The two crowds of people (on the right and left of the scene) that are looking in the direction of the pope are probably located by Tortorino in these positions for a precise reason. In the view of the artist, they would have surrounded the central scene and they belong to the same crowd that is attending the papal benediction. In the same vein, the kneeling man on the right side also belongs to the same group of ‘imperial figures’ that would have surrounded the kneeling man with the mitre.

Fig. 16. The Pitti column, crystal element no. 4, coronation of Charles V in the dress of a canon (su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo); drawing of the scene is made by Marco Brunetti.

As we have seen so far, according to the notarial document of the Pitti column, crystal element no. 4 depicted moments from the life of the ‘Spanish emperor’. Therefore, observing the scene at the papal court, the first thought that comes to mind is that such a scene would have depicted the coronation of Charles V in Bologna (1530) at the hands of Pope Clement VII. However, no similar interpretation has been provided by scholars and, although they did not even mention such a hypothesis in their studies, I assume that they did not take account of that possibility for two main reasons. The first concerns the representation of the Vatican in the scene and, second, the kneeling man is dressed like a bishop, and not like an emperor. In the scene at the papal court, Venturelli (Reference Venturelli1997: 141–2) saw the moment in which Carlo Visconti became cardinal (March 1565) — an event that happened only a few months before he donated the Pitti column (September 1565). I have already explained why this interpretation is not convincing: first, the short time between this moment of Carlo Visconti's life and the donation of the column; second, the presence of kneeling figures dressed according to imperial fashion that would not have been accepted in such a religious moment; third, such a scene would have been the only one related to the life of Carlo Visconti in the decoration of the Pitti column, whereas all the other scenes are linked to the figural propaganda of the imperial Spanish dynasty.

Although the notarial document mentions events related to the life of Charles V, two iconographic details seem, at first sight, to exclude the possibility that the scene at the papal court might be Charles V's coronation in Bologna (1530). However, in my opinion, these two elements that we are going to analyse do not exclude the possibility that the scene depicted is the Bolognese ceremony but, rather, they can be explained in the light of further knowledge of Bolognese ceremonial.

The first issue concerns the representation of the Vatican and, thus, a Roman (and not Bolognese) setting of the scene. In spite of that, all Renaissance literary works that describe the coronation of Charles V mention the fact that the city of Bologna was embellished through temporary decorations (‘apparati effimeri’) in order to appear like the city of Rome.Footnote ³⁷ In Palazzo Vecchio, on the vault of the room ‘sala di Clemente VII’ (1556–62), Giorgio Vasari depicted the coronation of Charles V and, in the background of one open door, the Pantheon of Rome can be seen (Fig. 17) (Allegri and Cecchi, Reference Allegri and Cecchi1980: 105). The second problem that seems to preclude the hypothesis that the scene might depict the coronation of Charles V concerns the dress of the man kneeling in front of the pope and, more importantly, the presence of the mitre. While in Vasari's fresco Charles V has a crown with a similar shape, Tortorino seems to have depicted a hat in the shape of a mitre. However, all descriptions of the coronation of Charles V in Bologna mention an unexpected passage of the ceremonial, namely ‘during the imperial coronation, Charles was invested as a canon of the Church’ (Parker, Reference Parker2019: 193). In fact, according to the medieval ceremonial used for the imperial coronation in the presence of the pope, Charles dressed in the clothes of a canon.Footnote ³⁸ Through this ceremonial, the emperor became part of the clerical institution and, thus, the ‘ecclesiastical warrior’ in charge of the Church. Although the medieval ceremonial was not always complied with by the emperors, Charles V follows the official medieval ceremonial in order to appear as the lawful heir of the Holy Roman Empire, and, according to such a ritual, he would have dressed in the tunic, dalmatic, cope (i.e. pluviale) and mitre.Footnote ³⁹ As Bernardi (Reference Bernardi1986) and Prodi (Reference Prodi, Cardini and Saltarelli2002) have pointed out, some Renaissance writers who described Charles V's coronation in Bologna emphasized the ‘imperial moments’ of the ritual rather than religious ones (i.e. they only briefly mention the canon dress of Charles V). In fact, since they were more interested in stressing imperial power over the Church (and not the contrary), they did not describe in detail each religious moment of the ritual. For this reason, the few representations of Charles V's coronation by the pope did not follow the ceremonial strictly, and particularly the moment in which Charles V dressed in the clothes of a canon.Footnote ⁴⁰ However, two drawings of the Renaissance Bolognese artist Biagio Pupini (before 1511–after 1575) confirm Charles V's outfit during the ceremonial; one is preserved at the Nationalmuseum of Stockholm (inv. no. NMH 810/1863) (Bjurström, Reference Bjurström2002: cat. no. 1279) and the other is at the Louvre (Fig. 18). Owing to the canon dress of Charles V, the Louvre drawing is still sometimes mentioned as ‘un Pape posant une tiare sur la tête d'un prêtre’, although in recent decades the kneeling figure has been identified as Charles V at his coronation.Footnote ⁴¹

Fig. 17. Giorgio Vasari (1511–1574), ceiling of ‘Sala di Clemente VII’ in Palazzo Vecchio, the coronation of Charles V in Bologna in 1530 (Pantheon in the background), 1556–62 (from Wikimedia Commons).

Fig. 18. Biagio Pupino (before 1511–after 1575), coronation of Charles V, drawing and pen, Louvre, inv. no. 8868 (recto) (photo © Rmn-Grand Palais (musée du Louvre)/Michel Urtado).

Therefore, considering the scene depicted by Tortorino on the Pitti column, we may conclude that it might depict the coronation of Charles V in a very unusual way through the representation of one precise and important moment of the ceremonial. How Tortorino might have known such precise detail of the coronation ritual is easily understandable because of the role of Carlo Visconti as commissioner of the Pitti column. As mentioned above, Carlo Visconti was a diplomat for Charles V and Philip II, but, mostly, he was a bishop (1561) and cardinal (1565). Thus, he was surely aware of how the coronation ceremony of Charles V was celebrated. In the planning of the decorative system, Visconti surely had a prominent role and might have suggested some details to the artist, such as the dressing of Charles V as a canon. In this way, we can better explain the presence of kneeling men dressed in ‘imperial fashion’ next to Charles V as members and delegates of his imperial court. Finally, we cannot neglect the fact that the figure of the kneeling canon has a very prominent beard and curly hair, details that connoted Charles V's profile, unlike those of Carlo Visconti.Footnote ⁴² In this way, the scene of the coronation in crystal element no. 4 becomes consistent with the decoration on the other side of the crystal element, described above. Therefore, as the notarial document states, both scenes seem to depict moments from Charles V's life and, as we shall see later, they are used to stress the power of Philip II, the main character of the iconological message.

Crystal element no. 5 has a crucial role for the entire decorative system of the Pitti column. Three scenes are depicted, which we can observe by combining them in a single image (Fig. 19). On the left side, we can recognize the siege of a town. The landscape is defined with great precision by the artist: on the right side, we can see a river that touches the town; the latter is characterized by a city wall, and a building with peculiar architecture can be seen. Next to the city wall, some cannons are depicted and two armies seem to enter the town. In the foreground, next to some tents, two soldiers are meeting: the soldier on the left holds a shield and seems to have a beard and curly hair; the soldier on the right is followed by an army. In the following scene, the same town is depicted without a siege. The atmosphere is peaceful and a long procession of armed men seems to leave the city from the left and reappear on the right. In the final scene, one man is closing the ‘Tempietto of Bramante’, whose value as the Temple of Janus I have already discussed.

Fig. 19. The Pitti column, crystal element no. 5, siege and battle of Saint-Quentin (su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo).

Scholars have not provided any interpretation of these three scenes, but simply mention the presence of a battle scene. They do not even suppose any connection with the ‘Spanish emperor’ — as the notarial document says for the lower crystal element.Footnote ⁴³ Considering that the landscape is so detailed and realistic, it is quite unlikely that Tortorino would have invented it simply to allude to the glory of Charles V in battle. Moreover, as we shall soon see, within the scene of the triumphal procession on crystal element no. 6, the soldiers at the head of the procession carry a city model that has the same shape as the main building of the urban landscape depicted on crystal element no. 5 (Fig. 22 further below).

In their analyses of the Pitti column, scholars have focused attention exclusively on the figure of Charles V because it is depicted in some crystal elements (Figs 3, 5). Nevertheless, the figure of his son Philip II is also depicted in the moment of receiving the order to lead an army. Not by chance, if we consider the period — mentioned by the notarial document — in which Tortorino worked on the Pitti column (1554–65), the imperial power was held by Philip II.

Considering the most important victory that Philip II had in his life, the first thought immediately goes to the Battle of Saint-Quentin (France) of 1557 which had major consequences in the Imperial–French wars (1551–9). The war was fought between the kingdom of France and the Habsburg Empire and, afterwards, through the Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis (1559), Philip II obtained direct control over some important Italian lands (Milan, Naples, Sicily and Sardinia). Obviously, the Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis had many important effects on the European and transoceanic political powers of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries that cannot be listed here (Mallett and Shaw, Reference Mallett and Shaw2014: 282–8). Considering the possibility that Tortorino might have depicted the Battle of Saint-Quentin on the Pitti column, the two scenes with a city landscape on crystal element no. 5 (Fig. 19) perfectly reproduce the scene of the battle that we can see in an etching made by Frans Hogenberg (1535–1590) and preserved at the Rijksmuseum of Amsterdam (Fig. 20). In Hogenberg's etching and the Pitti column's scenes, we can observe the same landscape and many identical details: the river on the left side that touches the city; the town with the peculiar building that, now, we can recognize as the Basilica of Saint-Quentin (before it was partially destroyed in the First World War); the cannons around the city; the armies entering from two sides of the town; and, finally, the military camp around the city. Although the etching preserved at the Rijksmuseum was made in Cologne around 1566–72, the first prints of Hogenberg's etching were made already in 1557 (Pollak, Reference Pollak2010: 122). Therefore, we can suppose that, already in that year or slightly later, Tortorino possessed an etching by Hogenberg as his source for the Pitti column's scenes in Figure 19.

Fig. 20. Frans Hogenberg (1535–1590), etching of the Battle of Saint-Quentin of 1557, Cologne (1566–72), h. 204 mm × w. 280 mm; Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum: inv. no. RP-P-OB-78.784-12 (serial no. 14/469) (© Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam).

Although the Battle of Saint-Quentin had great political value for the imperial image of Philip II, from a historical and factual point of view the victory over the French army was due to the command of Emanuele Filiberto, Duke of Savoy, who led the army against the French. When Charles V, during his retreat in Yuste, heard that Philip was far from the battle, he sent him resentful words for not having been present at such an important moment (Parker, Reference Parker2019: 482). For this reason, in crystal element no. 4, in the scene at the imperial court, Emanuele Filiberto and his wife can be seen, and now we better understand their presence.

It is very interesting that, contrary to the historical events, Tortorino stressed the role of Philip II in the victorious Battle of Saint-Quentin: Philip II receives the command to lead the army in crystal element no. 4 (Fig. 15), and, in crystal element no. 5, he meets Emanuele Filiberto and the army at the military camp at Saint-Quentin's siege (Fig. 19). As we shall see later, such political praise — together with other clues — suggests a precise hypothesis about the recipient of the Pitti column.

One last aspect of crystal element no. 5 has to be taken into account: the scene that depicts the triumphal procession leaving the city of Saint-Quentin. The scene of the city without the siege was chosen by Tortorino not only to show the town in a peaceful atmosphere, but also because the triumphal procession depicted here is connected to the procession on crystal element no. 6. In fact, the long triumphal procession that leaves Saint-Quentin seems to be the same one that continues for the entirety of crystal element no. 6.

Scholars have noticed how the decoration of crystal element no. 6 is clearly inspired by Trajan's Column. However, they did not (even try to) explain why Tortorino specifically chose this ancient model; whether the model of Trajan's Column is followed from a figurative point of view (and not only in its shape as a figural spiral column); and, above all, whether the procession depicted is moving towards a precise destination.

Obviously, Trajan's Column was a perfect model from a structural point of view: its shape fits perfectly into the structure of the crystal mirror with its slender form. This was not the only reason why Tortorino was persuaded to choose this ancient model. In fact, instead of element no. 6 in the shape of a spiral column, he might have used other overlapping crystal elements, as he did in the lower part of the artefact. From an artistic point of view, he might have done better to depict other overlapping segments, rather than a unique segment with a very complex decoration that continuously runs along the column.

Therefore, it is highly probable that the real reason why Tortorino chose the ancient model of Trajan's Column was the recipient of the Pitti column and the imperial figural propaganda that would have praised him. The figure of Trajan was deeply connected to the figural propaganda of Charles V, and Trajan's Column evoked such a link, as for instance when Charles V arrived in Mantua (1532). On this occasion, thanks to a sixteenth-century Italian literary work,Footnote ⁴⁴ we know that Giulio Romano created a huge column 40 m high, with a circumference of c. 8 m.Footnote ⁴⁵ The column was simply painted wood but it appeared as though it was made from marble. At the bottom there was a base with four scenes (‘showing how His Majesty the Emperor was the ruler of the whole world’). On the top there was a female statue made from plaster that represented a Victory with two wide wings, and, holding a laurel crown, it ‘seemed to be trying to place a crown on the head of His Majesty the Emperor’.Footnote ⁴⁶

When Charles V abdicated in 1556 in favour of Philip II, such an ideological connection was also used for the figural propaganda of his son. For example, in 1576 the erudite Dominican friar Al(f)onso Chacón (c. 1535–1599) published a famous album of printed copies of Trajan's Column (Historia vtriusque belli Dacici a Traiano Caesare gesti). As he explains in the introduction, he dedicated his work to Philip II because of the similarities that linked the two emperors.Footnote ⁴⁷ Also in the following centuries, the successors of Charles V and Philip II stressed their descent from Roman emperors with figural propaganda that repeated the link with Trajan. For instance, in c. 1720, Charles VI decided to build the Karlskirche in Vienna and, on the facade, the architect Fischer von Erlach erected two-storeyed spiral columns that clearly recall Trajan's Column and the imperial coat of arms with the two Pillars of Hercules and the motto ‘Plus Ultra’ (Tuzi, Reference Tuzi2002: 34–5).

Although no scholar has described in detail the decoration of crystal element no. 6, now, thanks to the images published here, it is possible to see what is depicted and whether Trajan's Column also inspired its figural decoration. The triumphal procession is articulated in the following groups from the bottom to the top (Fig. 21): citizens with olive branches in the manner of palm leaves (A1, B1), soldiers with olive branches (C1, B2), Philip II with his sceptre and seated on his horse (A2), a group of prisoners (A2, C2), musicians (C2, B3), soldiers carrying captured weaponry and models of defeated cities as trophies (B3, A3, C3), soldiers who carry flags (C3), knights with flags (B4, A4), and the entrance into a city surrounded by the sea (A4, C4).

Fig. 21. The Pitti column, crystal element no. 6, triumphal procession of Philip II (su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo).

From this synthetic description, it immediately becomes clear that Trajan's Column was not a source of inspiration for the figural scenes of crystal element no. 6. In fact, no scene of triumph can be seen on Trajan's Column.Footnote ⁴⁸ Although the procession depicted by Tortorino is not precise from an historical point of view,Footnote ⁴⁹ it includes all those groups and details that characterized the Roman triumph.Footnote ⁵⁰ Since no iconographic representation of a Roman triumphal scene was available in the Renaissance age, knowledge of Roman triumphal processions was essentially derived from ancient literary sources (e.g. Plutarch) and humanistic sources that collected those ancient ones (e.g. book X of Flavio Biondo's Roma triumphans).Footnote ⁵¹ Obviously, in the reconstruction of hypothetical scenes of Roman triumphs, Renaissance artists combined the descriptions of literary sources with images of the repertoire from antiquity, such as the scene of triumph on the Arch of Titus (trophies from the Temple of Jerusalem) or scenes of sacrifices (e.g. Roman reliefs of the suovetaurilia procession), until being inspired by Bacchic processions.Footnote ⁵² Considering the group of soldiers bearing trophies and town-models, Tortorino depicted some models of towns that Philip II won: one stands out particularly clearly and is the Basilica of Saint-Quentin (Fig. 22). Indeed, it is the first model to be displayed in the procession since it represents the most important war trophy of Philip II and it is also the main reason for the triumphal procession itself.

Fig. 22. The Pitti column, crystal element no. 6, detail from Figure 21 (C3) (Arbeteta Mira, Reference Arbeteta Mira2015: 75).

As is commonly known, in the sixteenth century the all'antica triumphal procession became an event often performed for the arrivals of Charles V and Philip II in many Italian cities. Nevertheless, we may suppose that Tortorino invented such a triumphal procession of Philip II, since no similar scene is testified by any figural source (such as etchings or paintings). Of course, he could have been inspired by his personal experience of observing the triumphal entrances into Milan of Charles V (1541) and Philip II (1548) or the etchings that depicted the triumphal procession of Charles V into Bologna.Footnote ⁵³

Although the procession engraved by Tortorino seems invented, one detail has to be taken into account because of its realistic representation. It concerns the city landscape that can be seen at the end of the triumphal procession (in the upper part of crystal element no. 6). The entire procession is moving towards the main entrance of a city that is surrounded by the sea or a wide river (Fig. 23). We might think that Tortorino did not want to depict a precise city, but rather a metaphorical entrance into a symbolic town, since Philip II did not celebrate a triumph after the Battle of Saint-Quentin. Of course, this might be a hypothesis but, also in this case, the landscape is so realistic that we might not be dealing here with pure artistic licence. The position over the sea and the structure of the city walls resemble some cities of Flanders and the Netherlands, such as Antwerp, as can be seen in an etching by Frans Hogenberg (Fig. 23). In Hogenberg's etching, the triumphal entry of the duke of Parma into Antwerp (27 August 1585) can be seen and, of course, such an entrance has no historical connection with the scene on the Pitti column. Although Tortorino copied one of Hogenberg's etchings for the Battle of Saint-Quentin, the scene of the triumphal entry of the duke of Parma into Antwerp was made by Hogenberg twenty years later than the decoration of the Pitti column. However, excluding some differences (e.g. the crenellated towers in crystal element no. 6), the resemblance between the two landscapes seems more than a simple coincidence.

Fig. 23. Above: The Pitti column, crystal element no. 6, detail from Figure 21 (su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo). Below: Frans Hogenberg (1535–1590), triumphal entry of the Duke of Parma into Antwerp (27 August 1585), etching, Cologne, 1585–1587, h. 210 mm × w. 280 mm, Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum: inv. no. RP-P-OB-78.784-247 (© Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam).

As Martens (Reference Martens2017) pointed out, through Hieronymus Cock's view of Antwerp (1557), the city of Antwerp became a model for the representation of many cities in general, especially those of Flanders and the Netherlands: immediately after its publication in 1557, Cock's etching spread widely in Italy. It was recopied or revised by Italian engravers, who used it as a study model for illustrating the urban system of cities in Flanders and the Netherlands. Hogenberg's etching of the entry of the duke of Parma into Antwerp was also inspired by Cock's view of Antwerp (cf. the representation of the city walls and the main entrance to the city) (Mielke, Reference Mielke2009: 128, cat. no. B220-II). Therefore, considering the resemblance between the two city landscapes on the Pitti column and Hogenberg's etching of 1585 (especially the main entrance to the city), we might suppose that Tortorino also used Cock's etching for the scene in crystal element no. 6.

One question needs an answer: why should Tortorino have used Cock's engraving of Antwerp to represent the final destination of the triumphal procession? After the Battle of Saint-Quentin, Philip II did not celebrate a triumph since he had not been present during the fighting and, mostly, because the action was led by Duke Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy. Nevertheless, in 1559 Philip decided to make a symbolic gesture that, in a certain way, would have celebrated the victory and the new age of peace that it opened. On 25 August 1559, he definitively left the Netherlands and came back to Spain as the victor of the European conflicts and the emperor of a new wide and peaceful empire. Setting sail from the Netherlands (from Vlissingen, a city in Zeeland), Philip II appointed his sister Margaret of Parma (1522–1586) as governor (Koenigsberger, Reference Koenigsberger2001: 193–219). Through such a departure, he left those lands that had been so important for his personal history and family and he ‘would never return’ (Parker, Reference Parker2014: 129). Although the departure of Philip II from Zeeland is not depicted in any graphic document, it must have left an important mark upon the collective imagination, especially in the years immediately after such an event (when Tortorino was still working on his artwork). We may suppose that Tortorino was aware of that departure (maybe, also through the indications of Carlo Visconti). Therefore, when he engraved the triumph of Philip II on crystal element no. 6, he depicted a city landscape that would recall the boarding of Philip II. In doing so, he might have used the most famous portrait of a northern city available at that time (that of Cock), although he partially changed the iconography.Footnote ⁵⁴ Of course, this is only a hypothetical explanation for the high level of similarity between the northern urban landscapes and the city at the end of the triumphal procession (Fig. 23). Equally, we might instead conclude that Tortorino has totally invented an urban landscape that, by chance, is similar to the Dutch city where Philip II celebrated his triumph. However, this latter hypothesis seems quite unlikely since it is clear from the previous examples that Tortorino was not accustomed to invent but rather to be inspired by different graphic models.

The last crystal element of the Pitti column (no. 7) is the globe that was originally surmounted by the mirror (Fig. 24). Although Venturelli omits to mention and analyse this last crystal element in her study of 1997, Agosti and Farinella had already (Reference Agosti and Farinella1987: 125) pointed out that Antarctica is not depicted (nor, obviously, Australia — discovered at the end of the century). Both scholars consider this absence as evidence for dating the Pitti column to 1540–50. Considering the reduction of Antarctica (and not its absence, since a part of it can be seen under Africa) and, especially, the shape of North America and California, the map depicted by Tortorino seems more up to date than what was known about these lands in 1540–50.Footnote ⁵⁵ One cartographical model that is more similar to the geography depicted by Tortorino is the 1560 map of the world by Paolo Forlani, based on Giacomo Gastaldi's 1546 oval-shaped map of the world (Fig. 25). Forlani's map is particularly famous among modern scholars because it is the first world map to mention the name ‘Canada’ in North America (Shirley, Reference Shirley1983: 121, no. 106). It was published in Venice, which, precisely from 1560, became the most important centre in Italy for the printing of geographical maps. Especially after their printing or acquisition, the most valuable geographic maps were displayed in private houses (e.g. in Wunderkammer) and made visible to selected visitors or exhibited in palaces with public administrative functions (Woodward, Reference Woodward2002: 106–20). Although we lack information about the numbers of copies of Forlani's map and where they might have been available for the ‘public’ to view and study, it is highly likely that such an ambitious and innovative representation was observed and appreciated by many intellectuals and artists. We do not know whether Tortorino could see Forlani's map in Milan or through his acquaintances in the Veneto. What is clear is that Tortorino had one etching as his model also in this case and the updated map of Forlani was perfect for praising the power of Philip II over the new continents and entire globe.

Fig. 24. The Pitti column, crystal element no. 7 (su concessione del Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo).

Fig. 25. Paolo Forlani, Paulus de Furlanis Veronensis opus hoc ex.mi cosmographi d[omi]ni Iacobi Gastaldi pedemontani instauravit, 1560, 39 × 51 cm, Ottawa, Library and Archives Canada, inv. no. e006581135 (accession no. 878011 CA) www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/CollectionSearch/Pages/record.aspx?app=fonandcol&IdNumber=180889&new=−8585996941150974783).

4. USE OF THE ANTIQUE AND NEW INSIGHTS FOR THE PITTI COLUMN'S ICONOLOGICAL MESSAGE

Through this analysis, we can consider new evidence concerning Tortorino's methodology. Through the identification of some models (such as Forlani's map of 1560 and Hogenberg's 1557 etching of the Battle of Saint-Quentin), it is possible to assume that, even if the decoration of the Pitti column was begun in 1554, the decorative system was not thought out and defined when Carlo Visconti requested the creation of the object from Tortorino. Surely, many aspects of the object (including the function, shape and dimension) were decided at the time of the request. Nevertheless, we can be sure that, at the beginning of the work (1554), the decoration of each crystal element was not decided. Probably, considering the long period of work (1554–65) and the cost of the artefact (in terms of material and labour), Carlo Visconti might have agreed and designed with the artist the decoration of one crystal element when another was finished.Footnote ⁵⁶

In addition to the artistic sources identified (Forlani's map, Hogenberg's etchings, the architectural project of St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican by Raphael and Antonio da Sangallo the Younger), Tortorino was also particularly influenced and inspired by antiquity. This does not concern only the model of Trajan's Column for the shape of crystal element no. 6, but rather it permeates the entire artistic language of Tortorino in figurative decoration. We have seen some precise examples in the case of the emperors’ portraits and triumphal scene. Nevertheless, even when it is not possible to find a precise ancient model, the influence of antiquity is also detectable in the postures and composition of the figures: the scenes of triumph from triumphal/bacchic processions, the scene at the imperial court (Fig. 15) from scenes of clementia on Roman arches, the battle scene (Fig. 8) from Roman sarcophagi.

One of the first regions of Italy where fifteenth-century artists studied antiquity, in addition to Tuscany, was the area between the Veneto and Lombardy (Bodon, Reference Bodon2005). Artists found in Roman art a new ‘vocabulary of war’ through which they could express their patrons’ political message: the Triumphs of Caesar by Mantegna (1484–92) are one of the first and clearest examples (Arlt, Reference Arlt2005). Through personal journeys to Rome or via the circulation of drawings that depicted antiquities,Footnote ⁵⁷ artists studied many ancient monuments that could enrich such a ‘vocabulary’. Obviously, Roman reliefs, and especially those of Trajan's Column, were among the most studied artefacts in this sense, from the last decades of the sixteenth century.Footnote ⁵⁸ As Kris (Reference Kris1929, I: 82–4) pointed out, Tortorino's style shares many similarities with that of Valerio Belli, rather than with the Milanese context where Tortorino mainly worked. Indeed, according to Giorgio Vasari, Valerio Belli was also famous for medals with the twelve emperors and, moreover, he was a careful observer and draftsman of the reliefs on Trajan's Column, as his testament states.Footnote ⁵⁹ Since Tortorino was particularly noted for his mobility and work journeys,Footnote ⁶⁰ it is possible that he could have seen or studied drawings inspired by antiquity in Belli's workshop or those of other workshops next to it.

On the other hand, considering the decorative system of the Pitti column, the all'antica style was not only the personal style of Tortorino, but was rather due to the function of the object itself. The creation of artefacts related to the imperial propaganda of Charles V and Philip II required decoration that was inspired by all'antica style, whether they were monuments or objects (from temporary decorations — ‘apparati effimeri’ — to the facades of palaces and objects, like those mentioned above, such as the V&A's cabinet or the facade of St Leon's convent).Footnote ⁶¹ The all'antica style of these artworks was not simply a matter of taste; rather it was an ideological tool for stressing the political derivation of Charles V and Philip II from Roman emperors (Scott, Reference Scott and Reeve2014). This is why the evocation of Trajan's Column and the use of all'antica style is so evident and pervasive in the Pitti column.

From the analysis in this paper, two other aspects have to be taken into account: what the iconological message of the Pitti column's decoration is and how it was communicated through the function of the object itself.

As pointed out, up to now, all the crystal elements of the Pitti column deal with the figures of Charles V and, mostly, his son Philip II. In crystal element no. 1 (Fig. 1), the main political and economic advantages that Italy and Europe had gained from the rule of Charles V, and also after his spiritual retreat, can be seen (peace, glory in battle, economic wealth, and fame). In crystal element no. 2, the portraits of the main Roman emperors of the first dynasties are juxtaposed with that of Charles V so as to stress how direct was his political derivation from them. In crystal element no. 4, two main episodes of Charles V's life can be seen: his coronation by the pope, and the military order received by Philip II from his father to lead the army against the French. This latter scene is particularly important not only for its link with the following scenes on the upper crystal element, but also because it depicts a different version of what really happened in the Imperial–French wars (1551–9). We have already mentioned the fact that, in reality, Duke Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy was the author of the victory at the Battle of Saint-Quentin (1557). However, the battle had enormous value and impact in the political propaganda of Philip II. It is no coincidence that the convent of El Escorial was built by Philip II after the battle in order to celebrate the victory, which happened on 10 August (St Lawrence's feast day). The presence of Philip II at the siege of Saint-Quentin is also stressed by crystal element no. 5 in order to emphasize the role of the emperor in that historical moment. Afterwards, in crystal element no. 6, the triumphal sailing of Philip II from Zeeland is represented in a decoration inspired by Trajan's Column in order to repeat the association of Philip II with Trajan, which had already been developed and used in the figural propaganda of his father. In this way, the portrait that the Pitti column provides for Philip II is that of a new Trajan: owing to his valour in battle, the son of Charles V of Spain was able to enlarge the limits of his ‘Roman empire’ and to open a new peaceful and flourishing age in Europe. As in the figural propaganda of Charles V, Philip II is associated on the Pitti column with the figure of Trajan not simply because of their common Spanish origin, but mostly because of the military and economic success that both had achieved during their empire. For this reason, in the upper part of the Pitti column, a globe can be seen with a detailed description of those continents that had been known only for a few decades.

From this analysis, the hypothesis that the Pitti column was made for a simple aristocratic man who had a strong relationship with Charles V seems unlikely, and even more so for a cleric like Carlo Visconti. The scenes related to Saint-Quentin mostly exclude the possibility that Charles V or some other important ruler (like Duke Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy) is the main character of the iconological message. The entire decorative system is so strictly related to the figure of Philip II that we could not suppose that any other person except the emperor himself was the potential recipient of the object. We have already discussed the political and diplomatic relationship that linked Philip II and Carlo Visconti, bishop and cardinal from Milan. Not by chance, Tortorino began to work on the Pitti column in 1554 when Philip II became duke of Milan (Leydi, Reference Leydi1999: 137–75). We might suppose that, taking advantage of this occasion, Carlo Visconti decided to honour his lord and ruler with a very precious object.

The possibility that the Pitti column was made to be presented to Philip II is suggested not only by its iconological message and valuable decoration, which was realized through a miniaturistic definition of the scenes as in no other crystal mirror,Footnote ⁶² but also by the function and use of the object itself. We have seen how, owing to the notarial document that mentions the Pitti column, it is possible to know that the Pitti column supported a mirror.

In the Renaissance, while crystal objects were generally collected by rich patrons and often displayed in the Wunderkammer,Footnote ⁶³ crystal mirrors were mainly made to be presented to male rulers, as in the case of the crystal mirror commissioned by Duke Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy for Elector August of Saxony (Fig. 4).Footnote ⁶⁴ Unlike the classical tradition of the mirror as a symbol of female beauty, in the Renaissance crystal mirrors were often donated to rulers because they were conceived as a symbol and omen of prudence.Footnote ⁶⁵ What made possible the association of a mirror with prudence is not totally clear to scholars: ‘they [sc. mirrors] seem to serve as a kind of threshold phenomenon allowing for the contemplation of inner and outer worlds, as well as the otherworldly’ (Frelick, Reference Frelick2016: 2). We do not know whether the association of mirrors with the act of reflecting or thinking (i.e. prudence) was inspired by the same Latin etymology speculum-(re)spicio. Of course, it should not be forgotten that, since the Middle Ages, the speculum principis (‘mirror of the prince’) was the literary genre that included all manner of treatises and literary works devoted to the right education of the prince.

Beyond any possible reason that caused the identification of the mirror as a symbol of prudence, it can be seen how, on the Pitti column, the decorative system was not mere praise of the heroism of Philip II and the glory of his leadership. In a certain way, we might say that, through the contemplation of his own image in the mirror, Philip II would have reflected upon his glory and the peace that had cost so much effort. Moreover, through its slender shape, the mirror would have stressed the connection between Philip II and Trajan, causing part of the figural decoration.

One problem seems to remain unsolved: why did Carlo Visconti not donate his gift to Philip II? Thanks to a document transcribed by Davillier (Reference Davillier1879: 217–18), we know that in 1590 Philip II wanted a crystal mirror and asked Pompeo Leoni to make it for him. Although Carlo Visconti anticipated this wish of the emperor's by many years, in the year of his election as cardinal and of his death (on 13 November 1565) he decided to donate such an artefact to the Jesuits of his city, Milan. We shall never know whether his election as cardinal or personal events brought Carlo Visconti to realize that the donation of the mirror was by now useless. What is more important is what effectively was the meaning of the scenes depicted on the Pitti column and especially how their creation and the use of all'antica language were adapted to the use and function of the object itself.