Gioie di Testa

Pinturicchio, Libreria Piccolomini, Wedding scene, Cathedral of Siena: men are
wearing hat badges 

"Gioie di Testa" is a very appropriate Italian description for the jewels that men wore on their hats in Renaissance paintings. This name is most fitting to the cultural paintings' level and the men who are wearing them.

"Gioie di Testa" in Italian literally means "Head jewels", "Jewels of the head".  In the beginning, I called these jewels by the name of brooches. I also described the meaning of these symbols for the men who were wearing them: brooches were representing the triumph of Virtue. Virtue was sealed by a luxury brooch.

I wrote two blog posts about this subject on this blog a few years ago. Blog posts were called: Brooches and the Art of Virtuosity (2012) and  Time for Action! (2013). I have always kept in mind how much I liked these jewels. The most talented artist who could paint "Gioie di Testa" is Pinturicchio, the Italian Renaissance artist who was born in Perugia. He was known as the artist of little things, of details. He was not as famous as Perugino, however, highly inspired the arts & crafts industry in the centuries to follow.

Jeweled gondola. This is the first time
I learned about such a usage of the word: jewel
(from the English teaching book I edited) 

What happens is that only a few days ago I found out what the perfect translation for "Gioie di Testa" could be. I would translate it: "Jewelled hat badges". How did I learn about the words ' jeweled' and 'hat badges'? By interacting with new friends of mine with whom I share my passion for the Italian Renaissance and the history of art.

The term 'jeweled' in particular was used in an Engish teaching book I recently did proofreading of and sent the corrections to the publisher.  'Hat badge' I learned from my friend Rosemary who used it as a description for a piece that is housed in one of my favorite museums in the world, the Metropolitan Museum in New York.

This is a simple example of how the learning process works when applied to something we truly enjoy and by interacting with friends who share interests with us. I find this process extremely interesting and I wanted to share it with you. I hope you enjoyed my blog post.

More about the jeweled gondola in the image on the left: Giovan Battista Scolari, jeweled gondola, 1568, Palazzo Pitti, Florence  Enameled gold, three pearls, three rubies, five (black) diamonds, two emeralds. Curiosity: diamonds were black because they were raw. They still didn't know how to cut diamonds!

A Gioie di Testa from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Partly enameled gold set with diamonds and pearls, c. 1460-80. It represents St. John the Baptist in a Landscape. In English, it's called a hat badge and in French an "Enseigne" (a sign). Evidently, hat badges were worn by French Renaissance men as well.

(Last image description by my friend Rosemary who posted it on the dedicated  Facebook Renaissance art event where you can find more information, images, and curiosities)

(to be continued...will post more when I find hat badges closeups from famous paintings. Could not find much online)

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