Eleonora of Aragon: A Fashion Doll and the Political Art of Gift-Giving
‘You were a zealous mother of your kingdom, and vigilant devotion to your spouse allowed you to take but the smallest gift of sleep-bearing night, and merely to taste the royal banquets.’
Excerpt from Epicedium of the Most Excellent Queen Eleonora of Aragon For The Most Unconquerable Ercole Estense, by Ercole Strozzi [1]
Cosmè Tura, c.1478-79. Eleonora of Aragon, from Del modo di regere e di regnare by Antonio Cornazzano. Tempera and gold on vellum, 240 x 160 mm. The Morgan Library and Museum, New York.
Born in the Kingdom of Naples in 1453 as the daughter of the powerful king Ferrante, Eleonora of Aragon was destined to live at the heart of the Italian peninsula’s riches, dangers, and diplomacy during the second half of the fifteenth century (Fig. 1). Her marriage in1473 would take her to Ferrara, where she became the city’s first Duchess as the wife of Ercole I d’Este, and later mother to Isabella. From her marriage onward, the Neapolitan princess became a formidable force at the Estense court. She ruled over and defended Ferrara in her husband’s absence, oversaw renovations of the city’s main buildings, and commissioned artworks from the greatest artist of this period, including Andrea Mantegna, Cosmè Tura, and Ercole de’Roberti (Figs 2, 3 and 4) [2]. The legacy she left on the Duchy, as well as its inhabitants, was beautifully reflected by poet and Ferrarese court administrator Ercole Strozzi in the elegy he wrote shortly after her death in 1493.
However, during her life, as a typical Renaissance noblewoman, Eleonora was a regular sender of gifts to various powerful individuals of her time. An interesting archival document, written by her guardarobiere Gironimo Zigliolo, currently held in the Archivio di Stato di Modena (ASMO AP 638), reveals the nature of the objects Eleonora sent and to whom. Among these gifts were practical items, such as coverings for carriage horses send to none less than Lorenzo de’ Medici (made from a previous garment of rich quality). In contrast, more exotic objects were also part of the Duchess’s gifts, such as three elephant tusks she had sent to Egano di Lambertini in the neighboring town of Bologna [3].
Still, the exchange of gifts was not reserved only for adults; even young children became part of the never-ending cycle of back-and-forth gifting. A Ferrarese account book from 1484 reveals an aspect of Eleonora’s rule that combines both her artistic patronage and political interests. I Registeri della guardaroba della Corte di Ferrara del secolo XV provides evidence of the expenses made for the production of a doll:
‘... spese fatte per una bambola, che la Duchessa di Ferrara Eleonora d’Aragona, moglie di Ercole I, mandava in dono ad Anna Sforza di Milano, fidanzata del figlio Don Alphonso d’Este.’
‘Expenses made for a doll, that the Duchess of Ferrara Eleonora of Aragon, wife of Ercole I [d’Este], sent to Anna Sforza of Milan as a gift, betrothed to her son Don Alfonso d’Este’ [4].
As noted above, the doll was made for eleven-year-old Anna Sforza of Milan, daughter of Galeazzo Maria Sforza, the Duke of Milan, and his wife Bona of Savoy [5]. At first glance, the doll seems like a sweet and appropriate gift for a young child. However, the production of these so-called fashion dolls was much more layered than one might initially presume [6]. Doll gifting was part of the larger practice of back-and-forth and counter-gifting in fifteenth-century Italy, where objects could serve to consolidate an alliance, create ties of indebtedness, or symbolise virtue [7]. What is particularly interesting about fashion dolls is that they could also introduce their recipients to the current fashion customs at the court from which they were sent [8]. The annotation in the account book mentions Anna’s betrothal to the Duchess’s son Alfonso, an agreement made between the Sforza and d’Este families when the pair were just months old [9]. While this practice was not unusual, it was particularly common within the Este family to bridge the long period between their children’s initial betrothal and the actual marriage by maintaining regular correspondence and changing gifts between the infant betrothed and their families, thus giving the marriage a foundation based on friendship [10].
While gifting was a common practice within the Este dynasty, this particular gift by Eleonora of Aragon to Anna Sforza becomes even more significant upon closer examination. While the aforementioned account book notes the production of una bambola (a doll), the creation of this gift was a much larger undertaking than just the manufacture of a single doll. In total, at least four dolls – including a lady doll, a squire doll and two children’s dolls – as well as a dollhouse, were sent to Milan. Various artists and craftsmen working at the Estense court were involved in its creation. Tailor Tommaso of Naples was responsible for the creation of the finest clothes made of varying fabrics and colors. The lady doll (probably the one referred to in the 1484 account book) was accompanied by an outstanding set of attire made of brocade and velvet, while the other three dolls were also dressed in garments made of the finest taffeta, gold, and silver brocade [11]. Complementing this, goldsmith Battista d’Amadio embellished the gowns of the dolls with belts and made pieces of silverware to be part of the room’s furniture. More literally involved in the creation of decorations for the cameretta was Ludovico dai Morsi, who gilded various details of the doll-sized furniture. In turn, the wooden structure of the dollhouse was carved by Bartolomeo dall’Olio and was then embellished by Giovanni Trullo [12]. Finally, Antonio di Boccacci created the dollhouses’ wall tapestry to complete the realistic recreation of a Renaissance interior, which one can presume was in the proper Ferrarese style [13].
Similar to how she managed the upbringing of her own daughters Isabella and Beatrice, Eleonora seems to have wanted to instil in her successor Anna – perhaps in a subtle, child-friendly manner – the responsibility that came with her future role as Duchess [14]. Not only was it expected that Anna should become a good wife to Don Alfonso and produce an heir, but she also needed to learn how to behave and uphold the characteristics required of her role at court. Fashion, as evidenced by the popularity and circulation of dolls, played a significant role in the education of self-presentation at 15th-century Italian courts. The doll set could have encouraged Anna to imagine and “practice” her future position. The meticulous details created by Ferrara’s best craftsmen allowed her to engage with this fantasy in even the finest details.
The magnificent skills of Renaissance artists were deftly harnessed to Eleonora of Aragon’s own use, to a send a politically and psychologically loaded gift to her future daughter-in-law and successor. This gesture reveals how, at a very young age, children like Anna Sforza made acquaintance – albeit in a playful way - with the diplomatic language of their parents. At the same time, they were learning to appreciate the power and beauty of fine objects, which would become necessary as they honed their own tastes and leadership skills for their own reigns.
In 1491, seven years after receiving the symbolic doll, Anna of Milan did indeed marry Don Alfonso d’Este. Despite Eleonora’s careful planning, the marriage was short-lived as Anna passed away in childbirth in 1497. However, it seems that Anna had adjusted to Ferrarese court life before her untimely death. A vivid illustration of her integration to Ferrarese court customs comes from a trip to Venice in May 1493 during La Sensa. [15]. There, Anna, her husband Alfonso, sister-in-law Beatrice, and Eleonora immersed themselves into the city’s rich offerings, adding rare and fascinating objects to their ever-growing art collections. Although, at the time of their trip to Venice, and still unaware of her impending demise mere months later, Eleonora must have sensed that her legacy would be in good hands with her offspring. And indeed, it was. Her daughter Isabella d’Este - along with her siblings - rose to prominence as one of the most influential female art patrons in history [16]. Following in her mother’s footsteps, Isabella wielded the arts as a powerful tool throughout her reign, leaving an indelible mark on renaissance culture.
Merel van der Windt (MA in Art History, University of Amsterdam)
NOTES
[1] ^ Dean Marcel Cassella, ‘Culture and Self-Representation in the Este Court: Ercole Strozzi’s Funeral Elegy of Eleonora of Aragon, A Text, Translation and Commentary’ (Dissertatie, University of North Texas, 2010), 62. Lines 142-145.
[2] ^ Marco Folin, ‘La Corte Della Duchessa: Eleonora d’Aragona a Ferrara’, in Donne Di Potere Nel Rinascimento, ed. L. Arcangeli and S. Peyronel (Rome: 2008), 493–94, 505–6. The three panels shown likely functioned as a spalliere-panel series, either for Eleonora studiolo or another small room in her appartments. Record books show de’Roberti was payed for his work in these chambers between 1489 and 1493. For more information of these panels and their meaning, see: Ruth Wilkins Sullivan, ‘Three Ferrarese Panels on the Theme of “Death Rather than Dishonour” and the Neapolitan Connection’, Zeitschrift Für Kunstgeschichte 57, no. 4 (1994): 610–25, https://doi.org/10.2307/1482717.
[3] ^ Leah R. Clark, Collecting Art in the Italian Renaissance Court: Objects and Exchanges (Cambridge University Press, 2018), 6–7.
[4] [5] ^ After the asssination of Galeazzo in 1476, Bona of Savoy served as regent of Milan for her seven-year-old son and heir to the Duchy. Jessica O’Leary, Elite Women as Diplomatic Agents in Italy and Hungary, 1470–1510 (Arc Humanities Press, 2022), 35, http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv26qjj19.
[6] ^ For more on the history of fashion dolls, see: Margot Yeomans, ‘Fashion Dolls: A Short History’, Emporium (blog), 27 October 2020, https://www.emporium.org.au/isabella-deste-essays/fashion-dolls.
[7] ^ Leah, R. Clark, Collecting Art in the Italian Renaissance Court: Objects and Exchanges, 5.
[8] ^ Micheal Pearce, ‘The Dolls of Mary Queen of Scots’, Historic Environment Scotland, 2019, 6.
[9] ^ Pamela Tavernari,‘Il Dono Estense Ad Anna Sforza: Bambole a Corte’, Terre Estensi, n.d., 20.
[10] ^ Carolyn James, ‘Friendship and Dynastic Marriage in Renaissance Italy’, Literature & History 17 (2008): 11.
[11] ^ Carmelina Urso, ‘Le Bambole Nel Medioevo e Oltre: Valenza Ludica, Simbolica e Allegorica’, Università Degli Studi Di Catania, 2018, 65, https://doi.org/10.4420/unict-asdf.17.2018.4.
[12] ^ The same Giovanni Trullo appears regularly in registers and account books for having done work in the Duchess' apartments such as painting a fresco depicting a city view of her hometown, Naples, on her balcony. For more on this, see: Thomas Tuohy, Herculean Ferrara - Ercole d’Este (1471-1505) and the Invention of a Ducal Capital (Cambridge University Press, 2002), 416 Document 21.
[13] ^ Tavernari, ‘Il Dono Estense Ad Anna Sforza: Bambole a Corte’, 21–22.
[14] ^ Correspondence between Eleonora and her daughters Isabella and Beatrice d’Este reveals the tough love with which she supported and encouraged them in their new roles at respectively, the courts of Milan and Mantua. For more information on this, see: Carolyn James, ‘What’s Love Got to Go with It? Dynastic Politics and Motherhood in the Letters of Eleonora of Aragon and Her Daughters’, Women’s History Review 24, no. 4 (2015): 528–47.
[15] ^ For more information on the activities of female collectors in Venice during the Renaissance, see: Leah R. Clark, ‘The Politics of Acquisition: Venetian Objects in Italian Courtly Collections, c.1475-1525’, in Typical Venice? Venetian Commodities, 13th-16th Centuries, ed. Philippe Cordez (Turnhout: Brepols, 2019).
[16] ^ In addition to Isabella d’Este, notable contributions include the artistic creations overseen by Alfonso I d’Este, famous for his Camerino d’Alabastro (Room of Alabaster); Beatrice d’Este, renowned for her love of poetry, music, and fashion sense; and Cardinal Ippolito d’Este, a patron of (Flemish) musicians.
Jessica O’Leary