LE POTENTIE DI DIO ED I SEGRETI DELLA NATURA:

ART AND OCCULT PHILOSOPHY IN THE SALA DEGLI ELEMENTI IN THE PALAZZO VECCHIO IN FLORENCE

Abstract

After taking the Duchy of Florence in 1537, Cosimo I de’ Medici (1519-1574) realized a series of artistic commissions, seeking the promotion of his figure and his power. Among these works, the Sala degli Elementi in the Palazzo Vecchio was executed between 1555 and 1557. In this pictorial cycle, under the supervision of Giorgio Vasari (1511-1574) and the erudite Cosimo Bartoli (1503-1572), it has resorted to the mythological and conceptual repertoire inspired by the Neoplatonic syncretism developed in the second half of the 15th century. The present study argues that this theoretical corpus, derived from the Renaissance occult philosophy, was visually used as a tool of political propaganda and celebration of the figure of Cosimo I, being part of a broader process of circulation of esoteric ideas in Florentine society and art during the 16th century.