Botticelli's Primavera: The Young Lorenzo's Transformation

About the Book

The meaning of Botticelli’s Primavera has intrigued art historians since the late nineteenth century. It has provoked much scholarly attention, but there has been no consensus regarding its meaning. One of the problems facing art historians has been the scarcity of historical data about the painting. Alessandro Filipepi, known as Sandro Botticelli, was practically forgotten after his death in 1510. Not until the late 19th century did his work again find an appreciative viewership. At that time, the only known reference to the Primavera was in the 16th century book, Lives of Seventy of the Most Eminent Painters, Sculptors and Architects, written by Giorgio Vasari, in which the author noted two paintings by Botticelli that were then at Duke Cosimo de’Medici’s (1519-1574) villa at Castello. It is generally agreed that he was referring to the Birth of Venus and the Primavera, which probably were painted between 1478 and 1480. In recent years, however, Medici records from around 1500 have come to light that establish that the Primavera was in the possession of the young Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de’Medici (1463-1503), the second cousin of the famous Lorenzo il Magnifico. These inventories also show that the painting was hung in the antechamber to Lorenzo’s bedroom. Another probable source cannot be ignored. The 15th century philosopher and founder of the Medicean Neo-Platonic Academy, Marsilio Ficino, was a mentor to the young Lorenzo, and his letters show his influence on and deep concern for the boy. Finally, a careful examination of the medallion worn around the neck of the central figure in the painting reveals it to be a beveled crescent moon surrounding a red stone. This was an attribute of the Egyptian goddess, Isis. Clearly any interpretation of this painting must explain why this goddess rather than Venus dominates a work that was meant for a boy still in his teens. Until now, no one has proposed such a program.

About the Author

I received a PhD in Art History from Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill. in 1970 and taught courses in that field for 29 years at Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, retiring in 1999 as Professor Emerita. I had read the various interpretations of Botticelli's Primavera while teaching "Painting of the Italian Renaissance" and was struck by the difficulties art historians seem to have encountered in their attempts to understand what clearly is an odd painting in the context of Botticelli's art. At that time, I also was teaching a course that I had developed, called "Images of Women in Art." In doing so, I researched the images of goddesses and mythological women throughout history. My attention was drawn to the Roman statues of the goddess Isis and how remarkably similar they were to the central figure in the Primavera. Could that figure in Botticelli's painting be someone other than the Venus she was held to be? And, I went from there to the manuscript I now have ready to publish. I was born and raised in Evanston, earned by B.A. from Denison University in Granville, Ohio, was married long enough to have three daughters, and then went to graduate school. Although I earned my degree under my ex-husband's name, I returned to my family name when I began teaching at Northeastern.