de' Medici, Lorenzo "The Magnificent" - Florence, Italy

Lorenzo "The Magnificent" de Medici

Medici Chapel

Florence, Italy

N 43° 46.516 E 011° 15.200

The sepulcher holding the remains of Lorenzo "The Magnificent" de Medici is located in the new sacristy of the Medici Chapel. Is an altar-like structure with the sculptures of Saint Cosmas by Giovan Angelo de Montorsoli on the left, the Madonna and Child by Michelangelo in the center, and Saint Damian by Raffaello da Montelupo on the right. The sculptures were added by Giorgio Vasari in 1554.

Medici Chapel

The sepulcher also contains the remains of Lorenzo's brother Guiliano de Medici who was killed in the Pazzi conspiracy attack on Medici family on Easter Morning, April 26, 1478. Lorenzo was wounded but survived the attack.

The front of the sepulcher is inscribed:

LORENZO IL MAGNIFICO & GUILIANO DEI

Lorenzo de Medici was He was born in the Republic of Florence on January 1, 1449. He was a Florentine statesman and the de facto ruler of the Florentine Republic from the age of twenty, when his father, Piero di Cosimo de Medici, died until his death on April 8, 1492 at age 49.

Lorenzo "The Magnificent" de Medici is famous for being the foremost patron of the Renaissance culture in Italy. Among the artist receiving patronage from Lorenzo were Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Sandro Botticelli, and Domenico Ghirlandaio. Lorenzo himself was an artist and wrote poetry. Lorenzo also expanded the Medici Library begun by his grandfather Cosimo. He employed a great number of workers to copy books and spread them across Europe.