Document 08

Sigismondo Malatesta writes in 1452 to Bianca Maria Visconti and shows interest at the Trionfi production in Cremona. This circumstance could be interpreted in two ways: Either the Trionfi painter school in Cremona (probably Bonifacio Bembo and his workshop) is especially famous for their production of Trionfi or - second possibility - Malatesta is at the time, when he wrote the letter, in a region, where he has not much opportunity to get any Trionfi cards. And the second possibility would probably mean, that the distribution channels for Trionfi cards aren't very well organised in 1452, probably due to the condition, that Trionfi still is a rather new game. Sigismondo Malatesta

1452 [November – Sigismondo Malatesta requests cards of Bianca Maria Visconti Sforza, recounted by Daniela Pizzagalli]:

"Gran parte del suo [Bianca Maria's] tempo era anche occupato dalla corrispondenza, perché aveva contatti personali con tutte le corti. Intratteneva carteggi paralleli spesso ricchi di argomenti che esulavano dalla politica: significativa, ad esempio, la richiesta che ricevette da Sigismondo Malatesta, nel novembre 1452, di un mazzo dale famose carte da trionfi miniate, vanto dell'artigianato cremonese…. Di far realizzare un mazzo di carte per il Malatesta, Bianca Maria non aveva affatto voglia, anzi temeva di non saper mascherare abbastanza la sua invincibile ostilità contro di lui, tanto che, quando Francesco ordino personalmente i tarocchi a Cremona, lei, ringraziando per averle `levato questa fatica dalla mano' gli sottopose il testo della risposta a Sigismondo autorizzando il marito ad apportarvi modifiche."

[Pizzagalli 1988:129]

Preliminary translation
(by Ross Gregory Caldwell)

A large part of her time was also occupied in written correspondence, she having personal contact with the whole court. At the same time she maintained correspondence rich in subjects outside of politics: shown, for example, in the request which she received from Sigismondo Malatesta, in November 1452, for a pack of the famous hand-painted trump cards from the highly praised artisans of Cremona … Bianca Maria did not have the slightest desire to have a deck of cards made for Malatesta, on the contrary she feared of not knowing how to disguise enough her undying hostility for him, so much that when Francesco personally ordered the tarocchi at Cremona, she thanked him for “lifting this burden off my hands”, in the text of her response to Sigismondo, authorizing her husband to make modifications.






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