Caroline P. Murphy's Murder Of A Medici Princess

As the years progress, many historians have come up with their own conclusions and thoughts on the paintings, adding to the complexity of paintings’ meanings. One opinion that I used was the online article "The Special Case of the Medici: Experts in Self-Promotion,” which is a source in association with the National Gallery of Art, and the purpose of this article was to inform of the different ways the Medici Family used art during the Renaissance to promote themselves among the city of Florence. The source includes opinions of Artistotle; Vespasiano da Bisticc, a librarian of the early Renaissance period; and close friends of the Medici family, such as Poliziano. This article was useful in understanding the history of the Medici family and

Murphy and her book Murder of a Medici Princess. This historical non-fiction novel follows Isabella de Medici as she lives through all the drama of the Medici family and eventually meets her death in the end. The main section of this book that pertains to this essay is how the Medici family was depicted as saints, and Isabella’s description of her family in the painting provides for excellent insight into how a member of the family saw this manipulation of art. The author of this novel is a cultural historian who studies women in early modern Italy and its art. Her first book, Lavinia Fontana: A Painter and Her Patrons in Sixteenth-century Bologna, was published by Yale University Press and she has gone on to write many more books in this area (Vezzaro). The purpose of Murder of a Medici Princess was not to discuss the Medici’s family patronage to art, but rather to document Isabella de Medici’s life and her struggles with the power that her family had. Although this book is a secondary source, its content is based on historical documents, letters, and Isabella’s behavior, making it an accurate source of information. This first hand view on the manipulation of the Medici’s power offers a look into how they saw their patronage of the arts as a benefit to Italy’s society and can give a perspective different than the modern one. As mentioned before, the value of this book is very high since it has the views of a member of the family; however, it is also biased because of Isabella’s position. She does not have an outsider’s perspective of the the art and therefore will show favor toward her family’s patronage. Through both of the paintings, though, it is clear that the Medici family’s power over paintings was prominent in Italy and changed how the society viewed them for the better. With all three paintings, the Medici family depicted themselves in a holy manner, hoping to associate themselves with the church in