The Castiglione (or Castiglioni) family is an old noble family from Lombardy which counts many illustrious personalities among its members: popes, cardinals, army captains and senators. The Mantuan branch descends from Cristoforo Castiglioni (1345-1425) jurisconsult, nicknamed "the Monarch of Laws". He had six children with Antonia da Baggio, including Baldassare. Baldassare went on to become a mercenary captain and progenitor of the Mantua branch of the Castiglione family: his son Cristoforo had a son, Baldassare (1478-1529).
Author of "The Book of the Courtier", an iconic sixteenth-century work, Baldassare was a member of the cultural and aristocratic elite of the era. He resided in some of the most important Italian courts, including those of Francesco II Gonzaga in Mantua, Guidobaldo da Montefeltro in Urbino and Ludovico il Moro in Milan. Appointed Apostolic Nuncio, he was ambassador of Pope Leo X and Clement VII at the Spanish court of King Charles V. He became a friend of Raphael, who painted his portrait which is now found in the Louvre, next to the Mona Lisa.
The work by Castiglione published in 1528, is one of the first great modern European books and is well-known throughout the continent, contributing perhaps more than any other work to give form to courtly society, until the French Revolution. Its ...
In 2011, we wanted to donate our archives to the State Archive of Mantua, where the family library is currently in storage. The Castiglioni documents rank among the most prestigious aristocratic Mantuan archives and they contain documentation from the 14th ...
In 2011, we wanted to donate our archives to the State Archive of Mantua, where the family library is currently in storage. The Castiglioni documents rank among the most prestigious aristocratic Mantuan archives and they contain documentation from the 14th ...
The Castiglioni Planisphere is a large nautical map drawn on four parchments which are pieced together for total dimensions of 81.5 × 214 cm (32.09 x 84.25 in). The map, which indicates the known world in 1525, is attributed to ...
Part of the archive is the original signed version of the famous document “Lettera di Raffaello a Leone X”, 1519, which was actually written by Baldassare Castiglione for the artist and which constitutes the founding document of the protection and ...
Part of the archive is the original signed version of the famous document “Lettera di Raffaello a Leone X”, 1519, which was actually written by Baldassare Castiglione for the artist and which constitutes the founding document of the protection and ...