![]() ![]() The next oldest brother Giovanni is a Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church (and future Pope Leo X) and tries to moderate Piero's behavior when Girolamo Savonarola, a fanatical Dominican priest, undermines the Medicis influence through preaching in the plazas (on the streets). He is a wastrel and nearly destroys the family and country. ![]() Giuliano's brother Piero rules Florence through the family's banking influence. The author combines the idea of Lisa Gherardini with the idea that the portrait was commissioned by Giuliano de' Medici instead of Francesco to create a relationship between Mona Lisa and Giuliano and describe the political climate of the time. It is an explanation for the worldly look on her face in the famous painting. Napoli's story takes place primarily before her marriage. Historical references are not even clear which portrait is the Mona Lisa. ![]() The primary belief is that Napoli's character, Elisabetta di Gherardini, wife of Francesco del Giacondo, is the subject of the painting (but certainly not the only belief). The story is a fictional answer to the controversy surrounding the painting of the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci, a controversy spurred by the fact that Leonardo did not name the painting. Napoli packs this novel with historical details and speculation. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |