Bonfire of the vanities
A bonfire of the vanities (
Precursors
Although often associated with Savonarola, such bonfires had been a common accompaniment to the outdoor sermons of San Bernardino di Siena in the first half of the 15th century.[4]
Savonarola
Fra Girolamo Savonarola was a Dominican friar who was assigned to work in Florence in 1490 at the request of Lorenzo de' Medici – although within a few years, Savonarola became one of the foremost enemies of the House of Medici and helped bring about their downfall in 1494.[5] Savonarola campaigned against what he considered to be the artistic and social excesses of Renaissance Italy, preaching with great vigor against any luxury. His power and influence grew so much that with time, he became the effective ruler of Florence and had soldiers for his protection following him around.[6]
Starting in February 1495, during the time in which the festival known as Carnival occurred, Savonarola began to host a regular "bonfire of the vanities". He collected objects that he considered objectionable: manuscripts, sculptures, paintings, tapestries, and many other works of art, as well as mirrors, musical instruments, and books on divination, astrology, and magic.[citation needed]
Anyone who tried to object found their hands being forced by teams of Savonarola supporters. These supporters called themselves Piagnoni ("Weepers") after a public nickname that was initially intended as an insult.[7]
Savonarola's influence did not go unnoticed by the higher church officials, however, and his actions came to the attention of
Botticelli
Although some later sources reported that the Florentine artist
Writing several centuries later, in 1851,
In popular culture
The event has been represented or mentioned in varying degrees of detail in several works of historical fiction, including
- As a metaphor, Tom Wolfe used the event and ritual as the title for his 1987 novel The Bonfire of the Vanities and its film adaptation.[13]
- Vampires Marius and Armand visit the scene of Savonarola's execution after his body has been cleared away in Anne Rice's The Vampire Armand (1998)[14]
- The Bonfire is depicted in the video game
- Jordan Tannahill's 2016 play Botticelli in the Fire is a fictional retelling of the events leading up to the bonfire of the vanities.[18]
See also
References
- ISBN 978-3-8228-5992-6.
- ^ "Covenantseminary.edu". Archived from the original on 17 May 2008.
- ^ Guicciardini, Francesco (1970). The History of Florence. Translated by Domandi, Mario (1st ed.). New York: Harper.
- ^ Robinson, Paschal (1907). "St. Bernardine of Siena". In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 2. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
- ^ Martines p. 19
- ^ Martines p. 1
- ^ Green, J. & Karolides, N. (2005) Savonrola, Fra Girolamo. In Encyclopedia of Censorship: New Edition. New York, NY: Facts On File, Inc. p. 495
- ^ ISBN 978-1-60239-706-4.
- ^ Italy: Savonarola. Encyclopædia Britannica. 2007.
- ^ Martines, pp. 168, 275–277
- ^ Rab Hatfield, "Botticelli's Mystic Nativity, Savonarola and the Millennium", Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes, Vol. 58 (1995), pp. 88–114
- ^ Orestes Brownson, "Savonarola: his Contest with Paganism", Brownson's Quarterly Review, April 1851, Orestes Brownson Society, Archived 15 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine
- )
- OCLC 773710170.
- Ziff Davis, LLC. 14 November 2011. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
- ^ Plunkett, Luke (24 February 2010). "Assassin's Creed II: Bonfire Of The Vanities Micro-Review: Once More, With Fleeing". Kotaku. Gizmodo Media Group. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
- ^ Reed, Kristan (23 February 2010). "Assassin's Creed II: Bonfire of the Vanities". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
- Toronto Star Newspapers Ltd.Retrieved 15 May 2018.
Further reading
- Martines, L. (2006). Fire in the City: Savonarola and the Struggle for the Soul of Renaissance Florence. Oxford University Press.
External links
- Echoes of Botticelli in Early Modern Sources—Explores primary sources related to Botticelli and Savonarola