16th century, correspondence, Europe, historical figure, Italian, Italy, primary source, quotes, stories
Antonio da Trento, known as Nanino (Little Dwarf), belonged to the court of the Marquis of Mantua. There is a letter written in dialect in 1495 from Nanino to the Marquis, Francesco II Gonzaga (1466-1519). In a letter dated 24 July 1512, from the Marquis to the...
16th century, 17th century, bibliography, book chapter, England, Europe, France, historical figure, Italy, research, Spain
During a few hundred years the European aristocracy had something of a mania for dwarfs, ‘natural’ fools, and other humans of physical or mental difference or disability. Their relationships with these people of more humble backgrounds can be complex,...
16th century, bibliography, book, canon, Europe, fictive fool, Latin, Netherlands, primary source, quotes
Rulers, for all the advantages they enjoy, seem to me in one respect most disadvantaged: they’ve nobody from whom they can hear the truth; in place of friends they’re lumbered with flatterers. p. 45The Moriae Encomium by Erasmus (1469-1536), written in...
16th century, bibliography, Europe, French, journal paper, Netherlands, research, Spain
Cécile Beuzelin’s paper presents two 16th century double portraits, one by Antonis Mor (1519-75) and one anonymous (but previously attributed to Frans Floris). Both feature the dwarf Estanilao who served Cardinal Antoine Perrenot de Granvelle (1517-86), a...
16th century, Europe, fooleum, historical figure, Netherlands, painting, portrait, primary source
This is one of two double portraits featuring Estanilao, a dwarf who served in the household of Cardinal Antoine Perrenot de Granvelle (1517-86), a leading light in Hapsburg Europe. Â In this painting, the dwarf appears behind and beside what seems to be a...
16th century, Europe, fooleum, historical figure, Netherlands, painting, portrait, primary source, Spain
Europe stands out for the range and number of representations of fools and dwarfs in art, particularly during the late Middle Ages and into the Renaissance. There seems to have been an enduring fascination for both minds and bodies differently cast; dwarfs were...
15th century, 16th century, bibliography, Europe, historical figure, Italy, journal paper, research
This richly illustrated paper looks at dwarfs in Italian Renaissance art, shining a light on complex and even contradictory attitudes to physical and mental alterity, with a certain revulsion at deformity existing in conjunction with an admiration for nature’s...
16th century, Europe, Italian, Italy, primary source, quotes
Two Italian Renaissance writers lament the fact that jesters were admitted to the courts of the nobility in preference to the virtuous and the good. It may be that they felt their own class to be sidelined in preference for fools and buffoons and this was galling to...
