Sarah Blake McHam, “Donatello's Bronze David and Judith as Metaphors of Medici Rule in Florence”, Art Bulletin, Vol. 83, No. 1 (2001), pp. 32-47
1) What does McHam argue? Why was the placement of Donatello’s bronze David and Judith and Holofernes in the Medici Palace courtyard and garden significant? What does their placement reveal? (pp. 32)
a. McHam argues that Donatello's Bronze David and Judith was meant to evoke republican themes through iconography which was well known to the Florentine Elite. The statues were placed in the most public place of the Medici palace, which served as the seat of Florentine political power. David was located in the main courtyard where all could view him. It is unclear as to the precise location in the…show more content… The two celebrated instances of tyrannicide in the ancient world known by the educated elite in Florence were the attempted murder of Hippias in Athens and the assassination of Julius Caesar in Rome. Donatello placed antityrannical inscriptions at the base of the sculptures, which were labeled the Tyrannicides. The sculptures, Harmodios and Aristogeiton were symbols of tyrannicide in the West.
5) Which scholar from antiquity does McHam reveal provided the most detailed accounts and commentary about the Tyrannicides? How does this relate to the installation of the David and Judith in the courtyard and garden of the Medici Palace? (pp. 38)
a. Pliny's Natural History provides the fullest and most detailed accounts about the Tyrannicides. Pliny describes the heroes and their sculpture as symbols of Athenian democracy. The installation of the David and Judith in the courtyard and garden of the Medici Palace refers back to Pliny’s idea of having sculptures in private residences that resulted from the fame of the Tyrannicides.
6) How do the sculptures in the Medici Palace repeat features of the Athenian sculptures discussed in McHam’s article? (p.…show more content… The Policraticus was a treatise written about government by John of Salisbury. The treatise addressed issues of political legitimacy, legal theory, philosophy, and political thought. Policraticus represented the viewpoint of the Church because it was based on the Bible. Thomas Aquinas drew extensively from John of Salisbury's theories. The treatise also drew extensively on ancient authors, which sparked interest in pagan classical literature. This later became part of the curriculum in universities. McHam suggests that the Policraticus provided a means of assessing the rulers of ancient Greece and Rome. It also proposed the legitimacy of tyrannicide, which may have also contributed to its popularity. This made the assassination of Caesar and topics of tyrannicide important in Italy because of its
