FEDERICO'S HERALDRY
COATS OF ARMS, BADGES AND DECORATIONS OF FEDERICO DA MONTEFELTRO
In the manuscripts commissioned by Federico, the decoration was embellished with a plethora of allegorical and symbolic allusions derived from figurative elements, which are combined with coats of arms and elaborately decorated badges celebrating the virtues of the lord of Urbino.
The coats of arms found in the manuscripts belong to the Montefeltro family in its diachronic evolution, bendy and quarterly, and in addition, the coat of arms with the church pale, used after Federico was conferred the dignity of duke and the title of Gonfaloniere of the Church in 1474. The presence of these symbols can thus provide useful elements for the dating of the manuscript that contains them, keeping in mind that the coats of arms were often added in manuscripts made even centuries ago for other patrons or else not by lord of Urbino’s explicit patronage and only subsequently acquired (see, for example, Urb. gr. 2, twelfth century, f. 3v).
The badges—which can be created ex novo or inherited—are instead allegorical figures consisting of a simple image that represents and celebrates the virtues of the individual, an aspect of the character or an event that has characterized his life. The meaning that they illustrate is highlighted by the motto that often accompanies them. According to Paolo Giovio (1483-1552), who was the first codifier of them (with the Dialogo dell’imprese militari et amorose written in 1551, but published in 1555), they were not supposed to be so obscure as to be indecipherable, but rather, indirect and mysterious enough to render their meaning not too immediate; the motto had to be short but never ambiguous.
The symbolism that emerges from the badges of Federico involves two spheres of reference: that of the leader and that of the lover of humanae litterae. Some badges are constituted from ordinary objects for a professional soldier and allude to the qualities of the man in arms, such as tenacity, decision, courage; others emphasize the qualities of the learned man, his moral profile and purity. Sometimes the figures used are so elaborately made that they require a multi-layered interpretation, which always ends up referring to the figure of Federico as an ideal model of a Renaissance man. The most frequent images in this category include: the bombard, horse bits, crane, whisk broom, ostrich, olive tree and the so-called quartered tongues of fire.
The adoption of symbols linked to certain circumstances, such as, for example, the conferral of decorations, can also be a valuable element for the dating of manuscipts. For Federico, 1474 was an annus mirabilis because, between August and September of this year, in addition to obtaining the title of duke and that of Gonfaloniere of the Church, he was honoured with his introduction into two Orders, the Order of the Garter and the knightly Order of the Collar of the Ermine. The presence of the symbols linked to these events, widely represented both in the palaces of Urbino and Gubbio and on the pages of the manuscripts, is therefore an important terminus post quem for dating.
The adoption of symbols linked to certain circumstances, such as, for example, the conferral of decorations, can also be a valuable element for the dating of manuscipts. For Federico, 1474 was an annus mirabilis because, between August and September of this year, in addition to obtaining the title of duke and that of Gonfaloniere of the Church, he was honoured with his introduction into two Orders, the Order of the Garter and the knightly Order of the Collar of the Ermine. The presence of the symbols linked to these events, widely represented both in the palaces of Urbino and Gubbio and on the pages of the manuscripts, is therefore an important terminus post quem for dating.