Paolo Antonio Soderini
Encyclopedia
Paolo Antonio Soderini was a noble Florentine
jurist active in the anti-Medicean Florentine republic
, who spent some years resident at Rome
.
He was the older brother of the statesmen Piero Soderini
, who was exiled at the return of the Medici in 1512; a third brother was Cardinal Francesco Soderini
, bishop of Volterra. Like Piero he had been a pupil of Marsilio Ficino
at his informal "academy", patronized by the Medici
, but when Piero di Lorenzo de' Medici
fled from Florence in 1494, he declared at once in favour of the revived Florentine republic and served as Florentine Ambassador to Venice. Philippe de Commines
, unsympathetic to his policy, declared him, nevertheless, "one of the wisest statesmen in all Italy". On his return he was elected gonfaloniere
of justice in 1497. The institution of a Grand Council in republican Florence, on the Venetian model, was largely on his initiative. As republican supporters of Savonarola and the populist party, he shared his brother's exile when the radical friar was arrested.
In Rome he established himself in a house and garden close to Castel Sant'Angelo
, where he undertook some informal excavations and assembled a notable collection of antiquities, including Roman sculpture (including the Menelaus supporting the body of Patroclus
that passed from his heir to the Medici and can be seen today in Loggia dei Lanzi
, Florence) and inscriptions.
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
jurist active in the anti-Medicean Florentine republic
Republic of Florence
The Republic of Florence , or the Florentine Republic, was a city-state that was centered on the city of Florence, located in modern Tuscany, Italy. The republic was founded in 1115, when the Florentine people rebelled against the Margraviate of Tuscany upon Margravine Matilda's death. The...
, who spent some years resident at Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
.
He was the older brother of the statesmen Piero Soderini
Piero Soderini
Piero di Tommaso Soderini also known as Pier Soderini, was an Italian statesman of the Republic of Florence.-Biography:...
, who was exiled at the return of the Medici in 1512; a third brother was Cardinal Francesco Soderini
Francesco Soderini
Francesco di Tommaso Soderini was a major diplomatic and Church figure of Renaissance Italy, and brother of Piero Soderini. He was an adversary of the Medici family....
, bishop of Volterra. Like Piero he had been a pupil of Marsilio Ficino
Marsilio Ficino
Marsilio Ficino was one of the most influential humanist philosophers of the early Italian Renaissance, an astrologer, a reviver of Neoplatonism who was in touch with every major academic thinker and writer of his day, and the first translator of Plato's complete extant works into Latin...
at his informal "academy", patronized by the Medici
Medici
The House of Medici or Famiglia de' Medici was a political dynasty, banking family and later royal house that first began to gather prominence under Cosimo de' Medici in the Republic of Florence during the late 14th century. The family originated in the Mugello region of the Tuscan countryside,...
, but when Piero di Lorenzo de' Medici
Piero di Lorenzo de' Medici
Piero de' Medici , called Piero the Unfortunate, was the Gran maestro of Florence from 1492 until his exile in 1494.-Life and death:...
fled from Florence in 1494, he declared at once in favour of the revived Florentine republic and served as Florentine Ambassador to Venice. Philippe de Commines
Philippe de Commines
Philippe de Commines was a writer and diplomat in the courts of Burgundy and France. He has been called "the first truly modern writer" and "the first critical and philosophical historian since classical times"...
, unsympathetic to his policy, declared him, nevertheless, "one of the wisest statesmen in all Italy". On his return he was elected gonfaloniere
Gonfaloniere
The Gonfaloniere was a highly prestigious communal post in medieval and Renaissance Italy, notably in Florence and the Papal States. The name derives from gonfalone, the term used for the banners of such communes....
of justice in 1497. The institution of a Grand Council in republican Florence, on the Venetian model, was largely on his initiative. As republican supporters of Savonarola and the populist party, he shared his brother's exile when the radical friar was arrested.
In Rome he established himself in a house and garden close to Castel Sant'Angelo
Castel Sant'Angelo
The Mausoleum of Hadrian, usually known as the Castel Sant'Angelo, is a towering cylindrical building in Parco Adriano, Rome, Italy. It was initially commissioned by the Roman Emperor Hadrian as a mausoleum for himself and his family...
, where he undertook some informal excavations and assembled a notable collection of antiquities, including Roman sculpture (including the Menelaus supporting the body of Patroclus
Menelaus supporting the body of Patroclus
The marble sculpture usually given the rather arbitrary title Menelaus supporting the body of Patroclus due to its apparent representation of an episode in the Iliad, has had a complicated artistic and social history that illustrates the degree to which free improvisatory restorations were made to...
that passed from his heir to the Medici and can be seen today in Loggia dei Lanzi
Loggia dei Lanzi
The Loggia dei Lanzi, also called the Loggia della Signoria, is a building on a corner of the Piazza della Signoria in Florence, Italy, adjoining the Uffizi Gallery. It consists of wide arches open to the street, three bays wide and one bay deep. The arches rest on clustered pilasters with...
, Florence) and inscriptions.