Musical instruments in the Venetian home: contextualizing Marietta Robusti's self-portrait - Oxford Academic
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Bláithín Hurley
Musical instruments in the Venetian home:
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contextualizing Marietta Robusti’s self-portrait
I n a famous self-portrait of c.1578, the successful
young Venetian artist Marietta Robusti, daughter
of Tintoretto, represents herself standing before a
social standing, and Bellavitis has explored evidence
of women’s possessions in early modern Venice;
but these studies have made little comment on the
keyboard instrument holding a music book, against musical instruments that may have been used or
the dark background typical in Venetian portraiture owned by Venetian women.5 In this article I will
of the period (illus.1).1 Although the Uffizi’s online review the presence of musical instruments in 16th-
record card calls the instrument a harpsichord, it century Venetian domestic inventories preserved in
is certainly a polygonal virginals: the slanting right the Cancelleria inferiore, the Archivio Notarile and
side and back of the case are clearly visible, creating the Giudici del proprio of the Archivio di Stato di
a shape that could not possibly fit a harpsichord. But Venezia (ASV). Such inventories have previously
this shape is very characteristic of the 16th-century been used to interpret and analyse the conventions
Italian virginals, termed arpicordo. of 16th-century Venetian domestic life by Isabella
Robusti was not the only 16th-century Italian Palumbo Fossati and Chriscinda Henry, although
artist to associate herself with this instrument. The it should be noted that Palumbo Fossati’s article
young Sofonisba Anguissola does so in her Self- focused specifically on the domestic lives of artists.6
portrait at the spinet of c.1555—again, the instru- By considering the selection of instruments, the
ment is not a spinet, but a polygonal virginals.2 In rooms in which instruments are found, the objects
the young Bolognese painter Lavinia Fontana’s self- with which they shared their immediate space, and
portrait of 1577, also featuring a virginals, the dark in some cases the owners of the goods inventoried,
background is penetrated by a doorway, resolving I will reconstruct some of the practical norms of
the setting into an interior space (illus.2). Through women’s musical domesticity with which the first
the doorway an adjacent, grander and more brightly viewers of Robusti’s self-portrait would have been
lit room can be seen, furnished with a chest, a wall- closely familiar.
hanging and an easel.3 Musical instruments are listed in 91 post-mortem
These paintings have often been discussed in inventories dated between 1525 and 1589 held at the
relation to domesticity, the education and training ASV, Cancelleria inferiore, inventari. We can add to
of girls, and the demonstration of skills considered these three further inventories with musical con-
attractive and praiseworthy in a young woman of tents—one from the Archivio Notarile, Atti: Notaio
high status.4 However, to date little effort has been Bianco, reg. 383, and two from the Archivio Notarile,
made to contextualize these representations of Atti: Notaio P. Contarini, reg. 2586. (The inventories
musical domesticity with the traces of women’s eve- in the Giudici del proprio are of a different type
ryday musical lives that are preserved in domestic and so are discussed separately below.) Some of the
inventories. Anna Bellavitis and Isabelle Chabot inventories in the Cancelleria inferiore, when item-
have discussed the importance of possessions as ized in the Venetian archival indices, have been allo-
demonstrations of a person’s wealth, education and cated a number in parentheses denoting to which
Early Music, © The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press. PAGE 1 OF 8
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https://doi.org/10.1093/em/caac074
94 inventories represent a small proportion of all the
domestic inventories from this period surviving in
these archives, the absence of musical instruments
from the remaining inventories does not prove that
these households lacked instruments, because the
inventories are not necessarily exhaustive.9
Some examples will help to demonstrate the gen-
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eral character of the musical information contained
in the 94 inventories.10 Representative of the nobili
are Marcantonio Priuli, who possessed four violins
(violoni), two lutes (lauti) and two bagpipes (zam-
phogne); Giacomo and Gerolamo Bragadin, who
owned a virginal (arpicordo) with its case, a lute
(lauto), an old cittern or cetra (citera) and a dulci-
mer (dulcimello); and Vincenzo Pasqualigo, who
had five large and small lutes (lauti), of which four
had cases, a violin (violon) in an old wooden case, a
dulcimer (dulcimello) and two clavichords (mana-
cordi), one large and one small.11 Among the popo-
1 Marietta Robusti, Self-portrait with madrigal, oil on lani are the weaver, Paolo, who owned one violin
canvas, 34.2 × 38cm, c.1578 (Florence, Galleria degli (violon); Antonio, the perfumer, who had one vir-
Uffizi. Photo courtesy of Alamy) ginal (appicordo); and the cheesemonger, Francesco
Bini, who owned one lute (lauto) with its case.12 If
these examples seem to imply that nobili owned
social class the householder belonged: (1) = nobili, many instruments and popolani fewer, such was not
members of the ruling aristocracy; (2) = cittadini, always the case. For instance, the nobili Gerolamo
franchised Venetians who ran the civil service; (3) = Gradenigo13 and Francesco Bernardo14 were in pos-
popolani, the remaining Venetian population con- session of one lute (lauto) each, while popolano
sisting mostly of general labourers, shopkeepers and Antonio da Bergamo owned a virginal (arpicordo)
artisans. with its case and a cittern (cithara),15 and Filippo, the
Of our 91 inventories from this archive, 28 are barber, kept two lutes (lauti) and two harpsichords
stated to have been of the household possessions (caocimbani) in his shop.16 Filippo may have been
of members of the nobili, 18 cittadini and 13 popo- one of the many music-teaching barbers who popu-
lani. The remaining portions are unclassified, but lated Venice at this time.
many can probably be presumed to be cittadini, By their very nature, the 16th-century invento-
popolani and foreigners (stranieri).7 Musical instru- ries held in the ASV are listings of items which,
ments were thus distributed more evenly than one for the most part, legally belonged to male house-
might expect across all social classes, although on holders. But there need not be a direct relation-
the whole the very largest collections were found ship between ownership and use. Indeed, there
among the nobili, whose resources were greater and are many circumstances in which an item might
for whom musical display could be an important be perceived informally to belong to another
component of social standing. Palumbo Fossati has member of a household whilst formally remain-
previously stated that musical instruments can be ing the property of its head. Sharing space with
found in 90 per cent of the post-mortem inventories the instruments which populate our invento-
of merchants and patricians.8 Whereas this claim ries are often listed items used principally by
can be largely borne out by my findings, it is particu- women, such as dresses and jewellery, and chil-
larly interesting to note how many instruments are dren’s furnishings such as cradles and baby-
listed in the inventories of popolani. Although the walkers. Although these objects may have been
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2 Lavinia Fontana, Self-portrait, oil on canvas, 24 × 23.8cm, 1577 (Rome, Accademia di San Luca. Photo courtesy of
Bridgeman Images UK)
listed in the inventory as belonging to the head inventory-taker, and the other items found along-
of the household, they would have been used by side them, we can use these records of men’s own-
other members of the family.17 By attending to the ership to hypothesize the domestic use of musical
rooms in which instruments were found by the instruments by women and children.
Early Music PAGE 3 OF 8A useful case study is that of Lucio Martinelli.18 In individual given the profusion of objects listed in his
the Martinelli portego (entrance hall) and mezado inventory. Among these are several musical instru-
(mezzanine area), the more public areas of the casa ments: a large lute (lauto) and its case, a medium-
(house), could be found a number of paintings, sized virginals (arpicordo) and a large harpsichord
chairs, chests and a table, items that were commonly (claocimbano).20 However, it is the placing of these
found in Venetian porteghi (entrance halls) in this instruments within the Zeno casa, rather than their
period. Also in the portego was a harpsichord (cla- size or quantity, which is of interest here. In a room
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vicimbano), a large instrument which might serve overlooking his garden, Zeno’s medium-sized vir-
for a public display of status as much as for musi- ginals shared space with a number of paintings,
cal use; and in the mezado were three lutes (lauti). books, and items of religious devotion including a
Meanwhile, in the attic bedrooms, among the most painting of the Virgin Mary and a crucifix. The rela-
private spaces of the house and the most distant tively personal nature of these items would appear
from the portego, the inventory-taker found a baby’s to suggest that Zeno used this room as study space,
cot, several beds, two baskets, a baby-walker, and a implying that he participated in music in a private
number of chests containing clothing and bedding. capacity, either alone or with a few close friends.
Alongside these objects pertaining to household The large lute and its case, meanwhile, were found
management and the care of children were a violin in Dionara’s room, alongside religious paintings and
(violin), a muted virginals (arpicordo sordin), and, the furnishings one would expect to find in a bed-
in the attic itself, a lira with a case. We are not told room. Thus it seems that each member of the house-
if these instruments are old, but as they are not spe- hold kept an instrument in their respective private
cifically described as broken, we can assume that quarters, most likely for their own personal musical
they were in playable condition. Given their loca- purposes. As in the Martinelli casa discussed above,
tion in an area of the casa and among objects used the large harpsichord (claocimbano) occupied space
especially by women and children, it seems most in the portego.
likely that they were used for childhood music les- Although in the majority of cases Venetian
sons and practice, activities usually organized by households were headed by men, a few of the 94
the women of the household. From this distant and domestic inventories document households led by
private space, the sounds of musical training would women. While the principle that ownership and use
not travel to the portego and, therefore, would not need not overlap applies equally to these invento-
disturb the other members of the Martinelli house- ries, they nonetheless provide a particularly direct
hold. Other examples of how sound was managed witness to women’s ownership of musical instru-
both within and surrounding the home have been ments within Venetian households.21 The home of
discussed by Flora Dennis, including: keeping noisy Lucietta Tiretta—wife of Gerolamo, a doctor, and
children away from men, keeping different house- member of a noble Trevisan family—contained a
hold chores to designated parts of the home, and collection of stringed instruments: four lironi, five
using cloth hangings to help deaden sound.19 viols (viole) and four lutes (lauti), as well as a sil-
Another means of differentiation is seen in the ver lute (liuto d’arzento) with its silver bow (archeto
1545 household inventory of Gerolamo Zeno and his de arzento) (possibly a mistaken identification on
mother Dionara. Very little is known about Zeno’s the part of the notary); whilst Clara Amati, a popo-
life, as the only details provided by the notary are lana (member of the general population), owned
that his father’s name was Piero and he lived in the an old lute (lauto).22 The smaller keyboard instru-
parish of San Gregorio. As no mention is made ments dominate, however: Laura Morosini, widow
of a wife or children, it can be assumed that Zeno (vedova) of Bernardo, possessed a virginals (arpi-
was either a bachelor or a childless widower, who cordo) and a clavichord (manacordo); Eufrasina de
shared a home with his mother. Although no pro- Alberto’s painted clavichord (manacordo depento)
fession is assigned to Zeno by the inventory-taker, was stored with its green case (cum la sua cortine
he is categorized on the inventory as a member of de farza verde) in her portego, along with images of
the patrician class, and he must have been a wealthy the Madonna; Cecilia Angelo and Cecilia Favreta
pAGE 4 OF 8 Early Musicboth owned two used clavichords (arpicordi) each; resources are listed are Giustina di Alessandro, who
whilst Franceschina Gabbiano was in possession of possessed two recorders (flauti); and Maddelena,
one virginals (arpicordo).23 These examples provide widow of the shoemaker, Giovanni, who kept three
instructive context for the much better-known case old recorders (flauti) in her casa.26 Exceptional is the
of Elisabetta Condulmer, Venetian noblewoman case of Nicolosa Gualtieri, widow of Antonio, who
and possible courtesan, who owned four lutes at the in 1576 was in possession of a small virginals (arpi-
time of her death in 1538.24 Patricia Fortini Brown cordetto) in a small case, a harpsichord (clauicim-
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has argued that these instruments constitute evi- bano), a clavichord (manacordo) in a carry-case, two
dence of Elisabetta’s profession; but in fact it is clear lutes (lauti) and a cittern (citara).27
that numerous Venetian women who cannot have In sum, an analysis of these inventories suggests
been courtesans also headed households equipped that keyboard and stringed instruments were by far
with musical resources. Quite possibly Elisabetta’s the most popular domestic instruments in 16th-cen-
lutes did see use in entertaining gentleman call- tury Venice, for both women and men. Keyboards
ers, but they may also have served in the education came in several types, however, whose use was dif-
of her eight children, as well as in her own private ferentiated with relatively high levels of consist-
recreation. ency. Large, loud and sometimes beautifully painted
A further source of domestic inventories, focused harpsichords tended to be located in the portego, a
especially on women’s possessions, is provided by large and relatively public room whose uses were
ASV, Giudici del proprio, Mobili. It was the role homosocial and externally focused as much as they
of the Giudici del proprio to adjudicate in dowry were domestic. In contrast, the smaller, quieter vir-
disputes between widows and their husbands’ ginals and even smaller, even quieter clavichords
families.25 Unlike post-mortem inventories which, were more likely to be found in the private spaces
typically, listed all items in the casa sighted by the of the casa, especially study rooms and bedrooms.
inventory-taker, inventories made for the Giudici Furthermore, they were more likely to share space
del proprio were required only to list the items nec- with objects associated with family and domestic
essary to allow the widow to recover her dowry’s management, such as children’s beds, baby-walkers,
worth. Because of this, an inventory did not need bedding, chests for storing linens, and devotional
to include all the items belonging to the widow, only paintings. Their relatively secluded location and
those sufficient to repay her dowry. Therefore, musi- subdued volume had a practical value in the sonic
cal instruments are rarely listed, as their value in organization of the household, in that it kept the
relation to other household objects, such as beds and sometimes disorderly sounds of childhood musical
jewellery, was comparatively meagre. Nevertheless, training from disturbing those occupying the casa’s
the 14 inventories held in the archive of the Giudici grand reception rooms.28
del proprio which contain instruments, spread To represent a woman playing the virginals, then,
across all social classes, make for interesting reading establishes relatively precise co-ordinates for her
when examined side-by-side with the inventories musicianship within both the geography and the
held in the Cancelleria inferiore and the Archivio ideology of the domestic environment. Although
notarile discussed above. when viewed in a museum the three paintings with
The majority of these 14 inventories contain only which this article began seem to make bold claims
one instrument, either because the householder for the musical accomplishments of their sitters,
possessed only one musical instrument or, equally when placed in the context of a conventional Italian
possible, because they needed to include only one interior their claims are muted and cautious. These
instrument in their inventory to recoup the out- are women who know the place assigned to them
standing value of their dowry. There is a clear pref- in the household, away among its rooms (camere),
erence for stringed and keyboard instruments; it ready to take on the challenge of household manage-
seems it was relatively rare for Venetian women ment (whose equipment must be near at hand), and
to own wind instruments in this period. Among prepared soon to pass on the skill of music to their
the women for whom more substantial musical children, just as they will also pass on the skill of
Early Music PAGE 5 OF 8prayer. This is a reserved musicianship, deliberately that the young artists’ future husband will transact
quiet, which will not disturb the important business in a different part of the house.
Bláithín Hurley is a Senior Library Assistant with Waterford Library Services, Waterford, Ireland,
and an Associate Lecturer in the Open University’s Faculty of the Arts and Social Sciences. She holds
a PhD in History of Art from the University of Cambridge (2016), an MA in History of Art from the
University of Warwick (2009) and a BA in History of Art and Music from University College Cork
Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/em/advance-article/doi/10.1093/em/caac074/6968982 by guest on 02 February 2023
(2008). blaithin.hurley@open.ac.uk
1
For more on the life and works and F. Dennis (London, 2006), and living in Venice, some of whom
of Marietta Robusti, see A. M. pp.76–85; A. Bellavitis, ‘Women, eventually became Venetian citizens,
Silverstein, Marietta Robusti: La family and property in early modern see G. Fedalto, ‘Le minoranze
Tintoretta, daughter of Tintoretto Venice’, in Across the religious divide: straniere a Venezia tra politica e
(New York, 1998). women, property and law in the wider legislazione’, in Venezia: Centro di
2
For a discussion on how Anguissola Mediterranean (c.1300–1800), ed. J. mediazione tra Oriente e Occidente
used musical instruments in her Sperling and S. Kelly Wray (New York, (secoli XV–XVI): Aspetti e problemi,
portraits and self-portraits, see 2010), pp.175–90. For introductions to ed. H.-G. Beck, M. Manoussacas and
M. Garrard, ‘Here’s looking at the role of music within the domestic A. Pertusi (Florence, 1977), pp.143–62,
me: Sofonisba Anguissola and interior, see F. Dennis, ‘Music’, in At 526–34; and B. de Maria, Becoming
the problem of the woman artist’, home in Renaissance Italy, pp.228–43, Venetian: immigrants and the arts
Renaissance Quarterly, xlvii (1994), and F. Dennis, ‘Interior spaces for in early modern Venice (New Haven,
pp.556–622, at pp.589–90. See music’, in The Cambridge history of 2010).
also M. Cole, Sofonisba’s lesson: a sixteenth-century music, ed. I. Fenlon 8
Palumbo Fossati, ‘L’interno della
Renaissance artist and her work and R. Wistreich (Cambridge, 2019), casa dell’artigiano’, pp.109–53.
(Princeton, 2020), pp.83–4, where he pp.260–87. 9
For more on the contents of
focusses on the influence of music on 6
I. Palumbo Fossati, ‘L’interno della Renaissance Venetian inventories
Anguissola’s work, and p.153, where casa dell’artigiano e dell’arte nella and the items which Venetians
he draws a comparison between the Venezia del Cinquecento’, Studi chose to purchase, see P. Allerston,
musical self-portraits of Anguissola veneziani, viii (1984), pp.109–53; I. ‘Consuming problems: worldly
and Marietta Robusti. Palumbo Fossati, ‘La casa veneziana’, goods in Renaissance Venice’, in The
3
K. McIver, ‘Lavinia Fontana’s “Self- in Da Bellini a Veronese: temi di material Renaissance: costs and
portrait making music”’, Woman’s Art arte veneta, ed. G. Toscano and F. consumption in Italy, 1400–1640,
Journal, xix (1998), pp.3–8. See also C. Valcanover (Venice, 2004), pp.449– ed. E. Welch and M. O’Malley
Murphy, Lavinia Fontana: a painter 92; C. Henry, ‘What makes a picture? (Manchester, 2007), pp.11–46. See also
and her patrons in sixteenth-century Evidence from sixteenth-century J. Hinton, ‘By sale, by gift: aspects of
Bologna (New Haven, 2003). Venetian property inventories’, the resale and bequest of goods in late
4
T. E. Cooper, ‘Music in the artist’s Journal of the History of Collections, sixteenth-century Venice’, Journal of
home’, in The music room in early xxiii (2011), pp.253–65. Design History, xv (2002), pp.245–62.
modern France and Italy: sound, 7
For a full explanation of the legal
10
For research based on the workshop
space and object, ed. D. Howard definitions and requirements of inventories and other archival
and L. Moretti (Oxford, 2012), Venetian citizen status, see A. documents relating to musical
pp.50–75, especially the discussion Bellavitis, Identité, mariage, mobilité instrument-makers, see S. Toffolo,
of Robusti and Fontana (pp.55–6) as sociale: citoyennes et citoyens Antichi strumenti veneziani (Venice,
examples of female artists showing à Venise au XVIo siècle (Rome, 1987); S. Toffolo, Strumenti musicali
their intellectual accomplishments 2001). For an illustration of how a Venezia nella storia e nell’arte
worthy of a lady of court. See also the citizenry became increasingly dal XIV al XVIII secolo (Cremona,
McIver, ‘Fontana’s “Self-portrait formalized during the second half 1995); and G. Ongaro, ‘16th-century
making music”’, and Murphy, Lavinia of the 16th century, see J. S. Grubb, Venetian wind instrument makers
Fontana, where the importance of a ‘Piero Amadi imitates his betters: and their clients’, Early Music, xiii
young lady’s education is explored. original citizenship in Venice’, in A (1985), pp.391–7.
5
A. Bellavitis and I. Chabot, ‘People Renaissance of conflicts: visions and 11
‘in camera d’oro sopra canal
and property in Florence and Venice’, revisions of law and society in Italy grando: quattro violoni, due lauti,
in At home in Renaissance Italy: and Spain, ed. J. A. Marino and T. due zamphogne’, ASV, Cancelleria
art and life in the Italian house, Kuehn (Toronto, 2004), pp.259–78. inferiore, Miscellanea notai diversi, b.
1400–1600, ed. M. Ajmar-Wollheim On foreign immigrants working 24, n. 33, 19 March 1547; ‘un arpicordo
pAGE 6 OF 8 Early Musiccon la sua cassa, uno lauto, una objects were seen as belonging to inferiore, Miscellanea notai diversi, b.
citera vechia, uno dulcimello’, ASV, women has also been explored by E. 40, n. 21, 14 November 1563; Cecilia
Cancelleria inferiore, Miscellanea Currie, Inside the Renaissance house Favreta, ‘arpicordi usadi numero do’,
notai diversi, b. 38, n. 35, 1 November (London, 2006), esp. pp.24, 53. ASV, Archivio notarile, atti, notaio P.
1549; ‘cinque lauti grandi et piccolo, 18
‘in portego, un clavicimbano Contarini, r. 2586, c. 495, 13 November
quattro in la cassa, et uno senza, con sui scagnelli; nel mezado, lauti 1563; Franceschina Gabbiano, ‘uno
uno violon in una cassa de legno numero tre, in una camera in soffitta, arpicordo’, ASV, Cancelleria inferiore,
rotta, uno dulcimello e tutto soazado un violin, nell’altra camera in soffitta, Miscellanea notai diversi, b. 40, n. 5, 7
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et intagliado, doi manacordi, un arpicordo sordin, in soffitta, una September 1561.
uno grando et uno piccolo’, ASV, lira con la sua cassa’, ASV, Cancelleria 24
P. Fortini Brown, Private lives in
Cancelleria inferiore, Miscellanea inferiore, Miscellanea notai diversi, b. Renaissance Venice: art, architecture
notai diversi, b. 38, n. 74, 7 June 1553. 44, 27 September 1593. and the family (New Haven, 2004),
12
‘uno violon’, ASV, Cancelleria 19
F. Dennis, ‘Sound and domestic pp.173–81, 185 and 187.
inferiore, Miscellanea notai diversi, space in fifteenth- and sixteenth- 25
For more on the Giudici del
b. 42, n. 41, 10 August 1574; ‘uno century Italy’, Studies in the proprio, see I. Cecchini, ‘Probate
appicordo’, ASV, Cancelleria inferiore, Decorative Arts, xvi (2008–9), inventories, pawns and domestic life
inventari, b. 42, n. 10, 9 February 1577; pp.7–19. in early modern Venice’, Renaissance
‘uno lauto cum la sua cassa’, ASV, 20
‘uno claocimbano grando a tre and Reformation, xxxv/3 (2012),
Cancelleria inferiore, Miscellanea registry, uno arpicordo mezan, uno pp.39–61, at pp.41–4. For a discussion
notai diversi, b. 36, n. 16, 29 lauto grando cum la sua cassa’, ASV, regarding Venetian property law in
November 1535. Cancelleria inferiore, Miscellanea relation to dowries, see D. Owen
13
‘uno lauto cum la sua cassa notai diversi, b. 37, 20 June 1545. Hughes, ‘From brideprice to dowry
negra’, ASV, Cancelleria inferiore, 21
Donne a Venezia: Vicende in Mediterranean Europe’, Journal of
Miscellanea notai diversi, b. 37, n. 55, femminili fra Trecento e Settecento, Family History, iii (1978), pp.262–96,
13 March 1546. ed. S. Winter (Rome, 2004). and D. Owen Hughes, ‘Representing
14
‘uno lauto cum la cua cassa’, ASV, the family: portraits and purposes
22
Lucietta Tiretta, ‘quarto lironi, in early modern Italy’, Journal of
Cancelleria inferiore, Miscellanea cinque viole di piu sorte, quarto lauti,
notai diversi, b. 39, n. 18, 25 March Interdisciplinary History, xvii (1986),
con le sue casse, uno liuto d’arzento pp.7–38, at p.10.
1556. con suo archeto de arzento’, ASV,
15
‘un arpicordo con la sua cassa, una Cancelleria inferiore, Miscellanea
26
Giustina di Alessandro, ‘do flauti’
cithara’, ASV, Cancelleria inferiore, notai diversi, b. 24, unnumbered, 10 ASV, Giudici del proprio, mobili, r. 46,
Miscellanea notai diversi, b. 38, n. 78, May 1529; Clara Amati, ‘lauto uno c. 387, 20 February 1577; Maddelena
23 October 1553. vechio’, ASV, Cancelleria inferiore, ved. Di Giovanni calzolaio, ‘tre lauti
16
‘in bottega: do lauti rotti, do Miscellanea notai diversi, b. 38, n. 70, vechi’, ASV, Giudici del proprio,
caocimbani’, ASV, Cancelleria 3 September 1552. mobili, r. 40, c. 102v, 1 October 1576.
inferiore, Miscellanea notai diversi, b. 23
‘Laura Morosini, vedova di
27
‘un arpicordetto in una cassella, un
43, 19 November 1589. Bernardo, uno arpicordo, uno claucimbano, un manacordo (in una
17
For an examination of ‘gendered’ manacordo’, ASV, Cancelleria valisa), due lauti, una citara’, ASV,
possessions in the inventories of inferiore, Miscellanea notai diversi, Giudici del proprio, mobili, r. 39, c.
16th-century Verona (which has b. 36, unnumbered, 1 May 1536; 110, 24 October 1576.
various parallels with Venice at the Eufrasina de Alberto, ‘uno manacordo 28
For a discussion on the
time), see A. A. Smith, ‘Gender, depento cum la sua cortine de farza management of music and the sound
ownership and domestic space: verde’, ASV, Cancelleria inferiore, it produces within the domestic
inventories and family archives in Miscellanea notai diversi, b. 37, n. 4, 3 interior, see Dennis, ‘Sound and
Renaissance Verona’, Renaissance March 1543; Cecilia Angelo, ‘arpicordi domestic space in fifteenth- and
Studies, xxii (1998), pp.375–91. That usadi numero do’, ASV, Cancelleria sixteenth-century Italy’, pp.7–19.
Early Music PAGE 7 OF 8Abstract
Bláithín Hurley connect the world this image represents with the
documentary evidence available in Venetian domes-
tic household inventories. The current article analy-
Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/em/advance-article/doi/10.1093/em/caac074/6968982 by guest on 02 February 2023
Musical instruments in the Venetian ses post-mortem and other inventories in order to
home: contextualizing Marietta establish the musical instruments found in 16th-
Robusti’s self-portrait century Venetian homes, and the rooms in which
they were found and potentially used. Such invento-
In her self-portrait of c.1578, Marietta Robusti, ries, through their employment of simple language
daughter of Tintoretto, and a successful artist in and stock descriptive adjectives, offer strong insights
her own right, represented herself not with the into ordinary lives in Renaissance Venice, including
tools of her chosen profession but with a keyboard the domestic lives of the otherwise invisible musical
instrument and holding a music book. Much has women of the Venetian household.
been written about how this painting, and oth-
ers like it, reflect the necessity for well-bred 16th- Keywords: music; art history; Renaissance Venice; domes-
century young women to promote their musical tic interior; social history; women; gender; keyboard
skills. However, little effort has so far been made to instruments
pAGE 8 OF 8 Early MusicYou can also read
