Just browsing through some books by W.P. Theunissen on Russian Icons I wondered if they depicted Black Europeans.
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Egmond - Just browsing through some books by W.P. Theunissen on Russian Icons I wondered if they depicted Black Europeans.
Yes Egmond, they do. Russia was the site of Europe’s last surviving Black nation. Which was Colchis, an ancient country bordering on the Black Sea, South of the Caucasus Mountains. The area now constitutes the western part of the Republic of Georgia.
We know for sure that it existed until 400 B.C. because Herodotus wrote of it. Though his conjecture of it's beginnings, cannot be taken seriously.
The Persian Wars by Herodotus Written 440 BCE Translated by George Rawlinson
Book 2 - EUTERPE
[2.104] There can be no doubt that the Colchians are an Egyptian race. Before I heard any mention of the fact from others, I had remarked it myself. After the thought had struck me, I made inquiries on the subject both in Colchis and in Egypt, and I found that the Colchians had a more distinct recollection of the Egyptians, than the Egyptians had of them. Still the Egyptians said that they believed the Colchians to be descended from the army of Sesostris. My own conjectures were founded, first, on the fact that they are black-skinned and have woolly hair, which certainly amounts to but little, since several other nations are so too; but further and more especially, on the circumstance that the Colchians, the Egyptians, and the Ethiopians (Nubians), are the only nations who have practised circumcision from the earliest times.
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Theunissen mentions that these icons are derived from the Fayoum Portraits that were produced until about 400AD. The Russian Icons are from the 14th till the 16th century.
The Colchian lead leaves us with a space from 400BC-1600AD. What happened during this period.
But I would also like to find proof that the original Black Europeans who arrived 40.000 years earlier did not become extinct but rather lived on until the 19th century.
Colchis ancient region, Transcaucasia Main ancient region at the eastern end of the Black Sea south of the Caucasus, in the western part of modern Georgia. It consisted of the valley of the Phasis (modern Riuni) River. In Greek mythology Colchis was the home of Medea and the destination of the Argonauts, a land of fabulous wealth and the domain of sorcery. Historically, Colchis was colonized by Milesian Greeks to whom the native Colchians supplied gold, slaves, hides, linen cloth, agricultural produce, and such shipbuilding materials as timber, flax, pitch, and wax. The ethnic composition of the Colchians, who were described by Herodotus as black Egyptians, is unclear. After the 6th century bc they lived under the nominal suzerainty of Achaemenidian Persia and passed into the kingdom of Mithradates VI (1st century bc) and, then, under the rule of Rome.
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Sigmond - I CAN help you with that, but if your browser does not support translation (Russian), then you will have to install it. This is necessary because if you use English sites, you will get the usual European White man, lies and Bullsh1t. BTW - this work will test your mettle, the translations are often poor, so you will need to have your thinking cap on.
In Russia, Blacks were prominent until the Medieval; Look-up Prince Theodore de Smolensk and Yaroslavl, and St. Theodore Stratelate, these were Black Russian prince-warriors. Have fun.
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quote:Originally posted by Mike111: Sigmond - I CAN help you with that, but if your browser does not support translation (Russian), then you will have to install it. This is necessary because if you use English sites, you will get the usual European White man, lies and Bullsh1t. BTW - this work will test your mettle, the translations are often poor, so you will need to have your thinking cap on.
In Russia, Blacks were prominent until the Medieval; Look-up Prince Theodore de Smolensk and Yaroslavl, and St. Theodore Stratelate, these were Black Russian prince-warriors. Have fun.
St. Theodore Stratelate
Can´t install nothing workin from a library. Could not find first one, Th. de Smolensk.
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Egmond - I got this from a French site, it's not much, and has no picture (French are White Europeans you know), but I thought that it might help you. Sorry that I can't help you more, but this is not really my field of interest. {The translation is NOT great}.
BTW - In reading this, you might want to remember that the great majority of Russia is in Asia. And perhaps (I don't know the numbers), the majority of the population is non-white.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- He he, Just having a little fun with White Europeans:
The definition of "Black Russian"
The Black Russian is a cocktail of vodka and coffee liqueur (usually three parts vodka to two parts coffee liqueur, per the Kahlúa bottle's label, or five parts vokda to two parts coffee liqueur, per IBA specified ingredients). It is traditionally poured over ice cubes or cracked ice in an old-fashioned glass. This combination first appeared in 1949, and is ascribed to a Belgian barman who created it at the Hotel Metropole in Brussels in honor of Perle Mesta, then U.S. ambassador to Luxembourg.[citation needed] The cocktail owes its name to the use of vodka, a stereotypical Russian spirit, and the blackness of the Kahlúa.
The saint Prince Theodore de Smolensk and Yaroslavl, called the “Black”, was born during terrible years for Rus': the time of the Mongolian invasion, about 1237-1239. With the saint Baptism, it accepted the name of the saint large martyr Theodore Stratélate who was particularly considered among the Russian prince-warriors.
Prince Theodore was famous for his military exploits. In 1239, by the prayers of the Very Holy Mother of God, the saint Merkourios martyr-warrior delivered Smolensk which was going to fall vis-a-vis Batu, the Theodore child was not in the city. They had taken it along and hidden in a sure place during the war. In 1240, his/her father, prince Rostislav, mourrut. His/her older brothers, of heirs, divided the paternal grounds between them, allocating with the Theodore child the small possession of Mozahisk. It passed its childhood there, and studied there the Holy Scriptures, the Offices of church and military science.
In 1260, prince Theodore was married in Maria Vasilievna, girl of the saint prince Basile de Yaroslav), and Theodore became thus prince de Yaroslav. They had a son named Michael, but holy Theodore quickly became widowed. He spent most clearly his time to military campaigns, and his/her son was raised by his mother-in-law, the Xénia princess.
In 1277, the allied forces with the Russian princes, plain with the Tatares forces, took share in the countryside in Ossétie, and took “its famous Tetyakov city”. During this war, the allied forces gained a total victory. Since the time of saint Alexandra Nevsky (November 23), the khans of the Gold Horde, seeing the invincible spiritual force and the military power of Orthodoxe Russia, were forced to change attitude. They started to conclude from alliances with the Russian princes, and the kahns turned to them for the military aid.
The Russian Church made use of this providential improvement of the relations for the Chrétienne illumination from abroad. Already in 1261, thanks to the efforts of saint Alexandre Nevsky and of the métropolite Cyril 3 in Sarai, the capital of the Gold Horde, a diocese of the Russian Orthodoxe Church was establishes. In 1276, a Council in Constantinople chaired by the patriarch Jean Bekkos (1275-1282) answered the questions of the Russian bishop Théognostos de Sarai concerning the order of baptizing Tatars, and also the reception of the Christians Monophysites and Nestoriens among them in Orthodoxy.
During these years, prince Theodore was with the Horde. Being distinguished by the military exploits from the countryside of Ossétie, it gained the favours of Khan Mengu-Temir, which looked at the Orthodoxe Church with respect, Khan which édicat for the métropolite Cyril the first decree exempting the Church of the taxes.
The Chronicle known as: “The Mengu-Temir emperor and his empress loved much prince Theodore Rostislavich, and did not want that it turns over in Rus' because of his bravery and the beauty of his face”. Saint Theodore spent 3 years to the Horde. Finally, “the emperor returned it with great honor”, and the prince arrived at Yaroslav. His Maria wife had already died, and in the city, it was the Xénia princess who directed with her Michael grandson. The people of Yaroslav did not want to receive the prince who returned from the Horde, “not allowing him to enter the city but saying to him, “this is the city of the princess Xénia and Michael is our prince”.” Saint Theodore had to turn over to the Horde. The empress, marries khan Mengu-Temir, “appreciated it much, and wished that he marry his daughter”. Such a marriage had an importance considéralbe for Rus'. A long time during, Khan did not want to agree to it, regarding the Russian princes as the vassal ones or subjects. To give his/her daughter in marriage to a Russian prince would have meant that he recognized it like his equal.
More important still, that would have meant that he recognized the primacy of Orthodoxy, because before the marriage, the Tatar princess was to accept the Baptême saint. The khan hesitated a long time, but owing to the fact that an alliance with Russia was important for him, “it ordered that his/her daughter is given to prince Theodore, and that she is initially baptized, and it ordered that the Orthodoxe Faith is not insulted”. Thus, holy Theodore married the girl of powerful the khan, and she was baptized under the name of Anne. “The emperor held it in great regard and ordered that he sat opposite him, he builds a palate to him, and gave him princes and the noble ones for escort.”
It is there, with the Horde, that the wire of saint Theodore, princes David (+ 1321) and Constantine were born. The important influence that holy Theodore acquired with the Horde, it used it for the glory of the Russian ground and the Russian Church. Orthodoxy progressed among Tatars, and the Horde started to adopt the Russian habits, morals and piety. The Russian merchants, architects, and skilful craftsmen brought the Russian culture on banks of the Gift, the Volga, the Ural, and even to Mongolia.
From this period, the archaeologists found icons orthodoxe, and sticks and lampadas, through all the old territories of the Gold Horde, since then built-in Russia. Thus started the great movement missionary of the Russian Church towards the East, and the illumination of all the tribes with the light of the truth of the Gospel throughout the way to the Large Ocean (i.e. the Pacific). The orthodoxe Russian princes and their escorts, taking part as combined in the campaigns of the Mongols, learned much, and became familiar with the extents without terminals of Asia, Siberia and of Far East. In 1330, about thirty years after the death of saint Theodore, the Chinese Chronicles mention the Russians with Péking.
Saint Theodore lived in Sarai until 1290, when “the news came from to him of Rus, of the town of Yaroslav, that its first wire, prince Michael, had died”. Having given to the prince rich person present and a great escort, the khan returned it in Rus'. It became again prince de Yaroslav. Saint Theodore was worried with zeal of the reinforcement and the construction of his city and his principality. He had a particular love for the monastery of the Transfiguration of the Lord. Its celebrity spread herself through Rus', and all the princes sought his friendship and alliance with him. But over all, he was appreciated by the son of saint Alexandre Nevsky, André Alexandrovich, who supported it in all his initiatives.
When prince André became Large Prince de Vladimir, it accompanied it in its military campaigns. He was delighted by his victories, and was afflicted his defeat. In 1296, a bloody fratricidal war burst between 2 groups of princes: on a side, holy Theodore and Large Prince André, and other, Holy Michael de Tver (November 22) etsaint Daniel of Moscow (March 4). But with the assistance of God, the blood bath was avoided.
At a meeting of the princes (in 1296), the Syméon bishops of Vladimir and Ismaël de Sarai were arranged to bring the peace on the 2 sides. This fact, that the saint prince Theodore and the Ismaël bishop took part in the meeting, shows that holy Theodore used all his diplomatic talents with the Horde to establish peace on the Russian ground.
The attachments of Saint Theodore the Black with his origins with Smolensk were not disappeared, although it would have been difficult for him to be a prince de Smolensk. Consequently, in 1297, holy Theodore left to shift in Smolensk to claim his legitimate rights on the principality of Smolensk, which had been usurped by its nephews. But he did not manage to take again the town of Smolensk and to become again prince de Smolensk.
Shortly after this countryside, the saint prince-warrior fell sick. On September 18, 1299, the saint gave the order that one transports it to the monastery of the Transfiguration of the Saver, and there it accepted the monastic tonsure. Towards the end of the ritual, holy Theodore asked that the service be stopped. With the blessing of higoumene, and to answer the wish of the mourrant prince, one transported it in the garden of the monastery, where a crowd of people of Yaroslav had already gathered. “And the prince repented in front of all the people, if he had sinned against anyone or have bad feelings towards anyone. He blesses all those which had sinned against him or had conceived enmity in its connection, and begged their forgiveness. He accepted his responsibility for all his acts in front of God and the men.” It is only after that the humble war supplemented its desire to complete its life not very common and disturbed by accepting the design angelica.
All the night during, the higoumene and the brothers requested on the saint prince. Per second hour of the night, they started to sound the bells for the Crossbred ones. Saint Theodore lay silently on his berth of monk, and accepted Sacred mysterieies of Christ. When the monks started to sing the third “Glory” of Psautier, it made the Sign of Criox and returned its heart to the Lord. Its aspect with the tomb was extraordinary: “Marvellous indeed was the appearance of the happy one. It lay on the layer not like a death, but like alive. Its face was shining like the rays of the sun, decorated its worthy gray hair, testifying to its purity of heart and its benevolence”.
After that, his/her son, holy David (+ 1321) directed Yaroslavl. The second of its sons, Constantine, must obviously have earlier deceased. The veneration of the Church for prince Theodore began shortly after his death in the area of Yaroslav.
During the years 1322-1327, the bishop Prokhor de Rostov made realize celebrates it Evangile Théodorov, decorated with miniatures, in memory of Theodore saint. Previously, the Prokhor bishop had been higoumene of the monastery of the Transfiguration of the Saver with Yaroslavl. He knew the saint prince personally, and had been pilot of his tonsure and his repentance public in front of the people. The historians think that the delicate miniatures woven in this invaluable manuscript come from a Gospel that holy Theodore had itself, and that it had taken along to Yaroslavl like a blessing of his native Smolensk.
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Of course those paintings are much darker than they originally were due to chemical damage. Anybody who knows about Medieval art and the Russian environment would know that.
Posts: 26238 | From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA | Registered: Feb 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Djehuti: Of course those paintings are much darker than they originally were due to chemical damage. Anybody who knows about Medieval art and the Russian environment would know that.
What's the explanation for the subjects depicted in the paintings with coiled, afro style hair? Is that an accident also due to the "Russian environment"?
Posts: 148 | From: Sirius | Registered: Sep 2006
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# 1: Get help. (most of those photos aren't of black people)
# 2: Yes, there are a pocket of black Georgians. (The Kemetian myth of Sesostris says they conquered not only there, but inland Europe as well.)
# 3: Perhaps their phenetypes are echoes of the Neolithic incursions of Africans into Western Eurasia. Africans have never been static. Especially not today due to globalization.
quote:Originally posted by Djehuti: Of course those paintings are much darker than they originally were due to chemical damage. Anybody who knows about Medieval art and the Russian environment would know that.
^ This is but an echo of the argument against Black Madonnas in Europe: they were burnt by the candles or the environment made them dark. I told you guys Mary is an undercover Eurocentric. Recall his Lefkowitz-ian arguments against the Stolen Legacy and bigoted dismissal of Prof. James, his claim that Kushites and Egyptians being phenotypically differentiated, and on and on.
quote:Well then if you believe there are pockets of black Georgians, and there were neolithic incursion of blacks into Western Eurasia, then reasonable logic would suggest there was a presence of blacks at some point and time which existed in this region of the world.
I don't think he even cares about the subject. He's just taking up for his friend again. He's a socialite, think Paris Hilton. lol
Posts: 4165 | From: jamaica | Registered: May 2008
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quote:Originally posted by Alive: # 1: Get help. (most of those photos aren't of black people)
# 2: Yes, there are a pocket of black Georgians. (The Kemetian myth of Sesostris says they conquered not only there, but inland Europe as well.)
# 3: Perhaps their phenetypes are echoes of the Neolithic incursions of Africans into Western Eurasia. Africans have never been static. Especially not today due to globalization.
Well then if you believe there are pockets of black Georgians, and there were neolithic incursion of blacks into Western Eurasia, then reasonable logic would suggest there was a presence of blacks at some point and time which existed in this region of the world. Again, perhaps this is why several of the subjects depicted in the paintings have coiled, afro style hair. Thanks.
Posts: 148 | From: Sirius | Registered: Sep 2006
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Kid-without-his-box - Yes, but looking DESPERATE is Eurocentrism's job, not ours. You're just opening yourself up for ridicule.
That's a pretty lame reason for taking ANY position. You lost the box, but now you need to get some balls. Best way to do that, is to know what you are talking about.
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quote:the Openass spouts: This is but an echo of the argument against Black Madonnas in Europe: they were burnt by the candles or the environment made them dark. I told you guys Mary is an undercover Eurocentric. Recall his Lefkowitz-ian arguments against the Stolen Legacy and bigoted dismissal of Prof. James, his claim that Kushites and Egyptians being phenotypically differentiated, and on and on.
Incorrect, as usual dirtyass. What do all these darkened images of white saints have to do with the Black Madonnas which were rooted in Egyptian Isis worship or more ancient chthonic European mother-goddesses?? So spare me your sh*tty strawmen.
quote:I don't think he even cares about the subject. He's just taking up for his friend again. He's a socialite, think Paris Hilton. lol
Actually, Alive is just taking up accurate facts and scholarship unlike YOU. Perhaps YOU should join Paris Hilton since you're a bigger whore than she is. You could perhaps teach her your tricks on men. Posts: 26238 | From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA | Registered: Feb 2005
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Yes there are early Medeival images of the trinity in Europe that are depicted as black. There are early Christian illuminated manuscripts with blacks in them. Some of them look like the Ethiopian illuminated Bibles and manuscripts. But most of these are not images of people deliberately painted black. They are simply darkened images of old paintings that don't prove anything.
quote: In the middle of the 14th century, one of the most profound examples of the symbol of the blackamoor can be seen in the use of this image to represent Christ. It is clear from the documentation we have for the city of Lauingen in Germany, for example, that at about this time, the city's seal with the head of Christ wearing a crown of thorns is transformed to the head of a blackamoor wearing a golden crown. That the latter insignia is meant to represent the former is quite obvious from the accompanying inscriptions. One of the earlier ones read: "Sigillum civium de Lougingin" (seal of the city of Lauingen), while a later version clearly explains itself as the "Sigillum secretum civitatis palatinae Lavgingen (secret seal of the palatinate city of Lauingen)."
A German heraldic scholar writing before World War II offered two other reasons for a similar coats of arms. He pointed out that Ethiop (sun burnt) the black was a sun sign and therefore a symbol of divinity that could alternately be used for the Son of God or the Son of Man. He also pointed out that from what we know of the cult of the Black Madonna, the blazon of the blackamoor queen was a reference to Mary, the Queen of Heaven or her prefiguration as the Queen of Sheba and that the male versions of these insignia were therefore references to her Son.
Edmond likes posting images of whites and claiming they represent blacks making a joke of himself.
Most of the illuminated manuscripts that were heavily influential in early Christianity came from Spain, but of course most of those were destroyed or are hidden in private collections.
Not to mention the fact that Egypt, Nubia and Ethiopia were some of the earliest places to accept Christianity and produce such artwork. And of course the whole idea of such illuminated manuscripts goes back to the ancient illuminated scrolls from Egypt to begin with. So that is why many of the earliest such Medieval images would have featured blacks.
Christ is nothing but Horus and of course Horus represents Kingship. The pharaoh was the living Horus and therefore child of Isis who crowned him with her glory. He was the ultimate manifestation of the "risen god" in life or risen essence of the divine Sun (Ra) in the flesh who shone forth brilliance crowned with the sun's rays (original halo).
Oddly enough some Ethiopian painters still use light complexions in their work:
Of course this tradition is as old as any illumination in Europe and the similarities between the two is striking, which likely reflects influence from Ethiopia to early Europe. Yet the evidence for early works of Ethiopian illumination are hard to come by, even though Ethiopia converted to Christianity in the 4th century A.D.
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quote:Originally posted by Mike111: ^^^He he, The little cracker shows up. We must be getting too close for comfort.
ROTFL I'm not even white, dumbass! And NO you're not close to anything that is true or valid. Never have been and never will be. I already feel embarassed by the ridiculous statements you make in this forum and I'm not even black, so just imagine how I would feel if I was.
quote:Originally posted by Doug M: Yes there are early Medeival images of the trinity in Europe that are depicted as black. There are early Christian illuminated manuscripts with blacks in them. Some of them look like the Ethiopian illuminated Bibles and manuscripts. But most of these are not images of people deliberately painted black. They are simply darkened images of old paintings that don't prove anything...
Correct. These idiots are so crazy to misappropriate white European culture as 'black' that they obviously don't realize the obviously white European looks of the manuscripts besides the obvioiusly darkened paint, which again is due to a number of reasons such as pollution or fungal decomposition.
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Funny how the pollution or fungal decomposition only affected the face and hands. There are a number of other pictures of Black Madonnas (some even darker) that just so happen to exhibit similar "pollution or fungal decompositions" in the same places. Wow! Nature works in mysterious ways!
quote:obviously white European looks
^ Echos of the Hamitic myth, the rational being blacks can't have these "European looks". Mary when will you give up? Posts: 4165 | From: jamaica | Registered: May 2008
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^^^I have often found that the "not-quite-White-but-desperately-wannabes", or as some say, "light Browns". Are often quite anxious to demonstrate their undying love and supplication to the pale ones, by attacking all things Black that they don’t feel SHOULD BE BLACK, as if that show of affection would somehow lighten their skins.
Their logic is simple, since they are closer to White, rather than Black, White is obviously the end to defend. And because so many confused and intellectually limited Blacks, confuse a little pigmentation with shared interest, they are very useful to the White man as surrogates. That is why the little cracker has doggedly defended his master’s interests, even in the face of overwhelming evidence and logic. Because in his mind, he says, “Ya, I’ll give the Niggas Egypt, tough to fight that one” but nothing else, the rest gotta be White! Well little cracker, don’t give a sh1t what you think should be Black – it is what it is!
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All these pics of Jesus speak for themselves. I have heard about the Black Madonnas. I don't know how paintings in Europe somehow proves that they were painted by black people. What it shows me is that people were looking at how the people in that region looked and decided to paint a close to, look of Jesus and other Biblical figures.
Instead of trying to claim people who painted these as somehow not being europeans or White, we should embrace the fact that Jesus was such a strong part of these people, that the race of Christ did not matter to them.
Peace
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King - You know, I do try to be understanding, but sometimes you just make it impossible.
First of all, By all accounts Jesus was a Hebrew, They (Hebrews) looked like this..
NOT LIKE THIS!! Which was obviously a Russian attempt not to burn in hell for purposedly mis-representing Jesus. So they made him look "somewhat" Black.
Now in modern times, they have said, "to hell with it" if he can't be White, then he can't be! Think about it King, if these people REALLY believed it that Jesus stuff, could they have done this????
King, I know that you are all about being a good person, but does that mean that you must be a stooge and a fool for the White Man and his lies and bullsh1t??Posts: 22721 | Registered: Oct 2005
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Egmond, I thought that you might be interested in this.
Face to Face: The African Presence in Renaissance Europe
This groundbreaking exhibition will explore the wealth of European art to reveal the hidden presence of Africans in Renaissance society and the many roles they played. The exhibition will include approximately 75 paintings, drawings, prints, and sculptures drawn from the Walters own holdings as well as significant international loans from public and private collections. Visitors will encounter these individuals and their stories through the eyes of some of the greatest artists of the Renaissance.
Tour itinerary:
* The Walters Art Museum: October 17, 2010- January, 2, 2011
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Honi B - I think this answers your question.
Double-Sided Gospel Leaf, first half of 14th century Ethiopia; Tigray region Tempera on parchment; 11 x 7 1/2 in. (27.8 x 19 cm) Purchase, Oscar de la Renta Ltd. Gift, 2005 (2006.100)
The Tigray region of Ethiopia converted to Christianity in the fourth century and became a very important ally of the Byzantine empire, ruled from Constantinople (Istanbul), in controlling the trade routes to India. Tigray also maintained contacts with other Christian communities of the eastern Mediterranean, including those in Syria and Egypt. The compelling images on this double-sided leaf are from a group of early fourteenth-century Gospels that feature a revival of motifs that reached Ethiopia from the eastern Mediterranean, probably in the seventh century.
Both sides of the leaf are inscribed in Ge'ez, the ancient language of Ethiopia. On the front is a dramatic octagonal Fountain of Life flanked by peacocks, which are identified in the inscriptions as "ostriches" (royal birds in Ethiopia), and gazellelike "babula." The text within the domed space refers to the arrangement of the Eusebian Canon Tables, or index to the Gospels, which preceded the image in the original manuscript. On the reverse, the Crucifixion is represented by a monumental jeweled cross topped by a Lamb of God, symbol of Christ's sacrifice. At the sides are the two thieves bound to their crosses. Other leaves from this Gospel are in the Nationalmuseum in Stockholm.
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Am I the only one who finds it strange that Ethiopians used PINK and ORANGE pigments to indicate flesh tones in their art.
I also always found it strange that Ethiopians since the Aksumite Empire (which officially used the name "Ethiopia" in the 4th century), would use such a name.
For the un-indoctrinated, Ethiopia is a Greek word, it means "Burnt Face".
The point of all of this, is that if I didn't already know that those images were suppose to depict Black people, I would NEVER know it from the pictures - what's going on here. Are Ethiopians Oreo's?
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I'm still wondering about the Ethiopian color thing. Don't see where the Pink would come in.
Ethiopian Images
Wonder if this had something to do with it.
They had a close relationship with the Byzantine Empire.
AND
The Monumental Stelae of Aksum (3rd–4th century A.D.)
Some of the stelae also possess stone base plates depicting a two-handled Greek wine cup known as a kylix. Although it is well known that Greek cultural influences through trade were important at Aksum, where money was minted and inscriptions written in Greek, the significance of these plates has yet to be determined.Posts: 22721 | Registered: Oct 2005
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Europeans introduced Christianity to Ethiopia even as far back as the 4th century. And they had an artistic tradition that influenced the whole Nile Valley from Egypt to Ethiopia. Sudan at this early period was also Christian and many of their images were of European looking figures, similar to the Copts in Egypt. However, Ethiopia's art while receiving influence from the Byzantines and Greeks, seems to have developed its own artistic styles, with the almond eyes and simplified shapes we see today. Because they were working under the direct influence of European missionaries it is only logical that these Europeans would have made an impact on their artistic representations of the divine. The question is whether this Ethiopian style is purely indigenous or again the result of influence from the Portuguese and others in the 14th and 15th century. Part of the problem is that Christianity had a early foothold in Africa and the Nile Valley and across Northern Africa and this chapter of Christianity's history has largely been destroyed and is missing mostly due to the arrival of Islam and the turbulence that followed throughout the Mediterranean.
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quote:Originally posted by Mike111: I'm still wondering about the Ethiopian color thing. Don't see where the Pink would come in.
Ethiopian Images
Wonder if this had something to do with it.
They had a close relationship with the Byzantine Empire.
AND
The Monumental Stelae of Aksum (3rd–4th century A.D.)
Some of the stelae also possess stone base plates depicting a two-handled Greek wine cup known as a kylix. Although it is well known that Greek cultural influences through trade were important at Aksum, where money was minted and inscriptions written in Greek, the significance of these plates has yet to be determined.
So who ARE the people in those images? What ethnic group or area in Ethiopia and where are these images from?
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So are you saying that the Ethiopians didn't really know what Hebrews looked like, and so relied on European characterization? Or are you saying that the Ethiopians simply kowtowed to their European masters?
According to Stewartsynopsis, Hebrews have been in Ethiopia since ancient times.
The Tribe of Judah--the Ethiopian Jews are descended from Jews who accompanied Menelik, the son of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, from Jerusalem to Ethiopia. More scientific theories place the Falasha in the Agau family of tribes. Isaiah 11:11 strongly implies that there was an established Ethiopian Jewish community in the days of that prophet, approximately 740 BC. European Jews and others in different parts of the world were barely aware of the Falasha for many years. The Falasha thought they were the only remaining Jews. They continued to follow Judaism as it was practiced before the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. Most Westerners and Protestant churchmen learned of the existence of the Ethiopian Jews from James Bruce's five-volume work, Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile, published in Edinburgh in 1790.
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OLD RUSSIAN ICONS ARE SYMBOLS OF BLACK SUPERIORITY
The whole thing boils down to how we define 'Black.' What is Black, who is Black and why do we bother? Just a black skin tone is of little meaning and interest. A Black identity and Black identified domination of a culture or a nation or a state has much more meaning.
The two books by Theunissen, a great icon-specialist, speak about the pigments used, and he mentions browns, blacks and reds, mixed up with egg-yolk. In my first posting I point out the white robes, to forestall the ‘they have oxidized’ bullshit.
But what irritated me forever was that no mention is made why these people look black, to anyone who has functioning eyes. This is something which goes on in most eurocentric works: they dutifully print personal descriptions which say 'black or chimneysweep or basané (brown black), swarthy, very dark,’ but then merrily precede and print a so-called 'portrait' of a blond, blue eyed noble or royal person. Or they print a black portrait but do not explain why Madam so and so or Chevalier so and so looks black of skin! I have decided that this is a PROBLEM!
Then what they seem to think is that there are 'True Negroes' and 'African Caucasians.' So even if we would get hold of a pitch black portrait of say one Charles II Stuart 'The Black Boy,' and looking pitch black, they still can say 'Oh, he is a Caucasian, who happens to look black, but he is just white, honey. Go back to sleep! Massa has it al figured out for you, little Sambo.' What these two book just mentions but do not explain is that these icons are derived from Fayoum portraits. I guess by suggesting this they want to tell us these people are not Black but Caucasian. The production of Fayoum portraits ended about 400AD when embalming was declared a heathen practice.
The Black Madonna's from Europe are just part of this style of religious images. But because of the schism between east and west in around 1054, the western church seems to have abandoned this art form. Now, if black researchers would just stick together we could unearth the whole truth and see if they are again cutting Blacks out of the picture, so to speak. To me afro centrism is also about finding Blacks in the Diaspora and giving them their true place in history.
Right now I really want to know if the Africans who entered Europe 40.000 years ago really became extinct. I do not believe the crap that they suddenly turned white, as there are many sources which say that the whites came out of Asia, 6000 years ago.
So my hypothesis about the icons, as well for the Black Madonna's, is that they are symbols of Black Superiority in Europe. There was a black and coloured elite who did not have any use for a white Maria, a white Jesus or a white god. Maximillian of Habsburg even depicted himself as god, sitting on his throne, after or before he was crowned Holy Roman Emperor.
The Black Europeans are supposed to have looked like 'Oceanic' people. I defined them as a fixed mulatto race, freely intermarrying, with some looking more African, Asian or white. But most importantly they had a black identity called Blue Blood, which derives from Black blood. Most people believe Barack Obama to have a Black identity because he married a Black woman, to have blacker off spring as well.
To arrive at this piece one has to understand that Egmond Codfried’s entire postings feed into one research: Blue blood is Black blood. For this I have done many little researches and have linked all my conclusions to arrive at this simple title. This theory explains many things and show them to be connected: Why is there racism against blacks starting in the 17 and 18th century and still raging on, why we have museums full with whitened portraits, what does the Moor on portraits and heraldry symbolises but blue blood, why we have white supremacy, why we have black Madonna’s, why we have houseniggers posting and insulting away: because the oppressor always uses the oppressed themselves to keep each other in prison.
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Edmond you are talking absolute nonsense. Blue blood has nothing to do with blacks and is actually a mark of whiteness.
So whatever research you are doing, it is mostly bogus and has nothing to do with the true history of blacks in Europe.
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quote:Originally posted by Mike111: Doug M - The link says that the pictures were shot near Lake Tana, Gondar, Axum, Mekele, and Lalibela around May 21, 1998.
So are you saying that the Ethiopians didn't really know what Hebrews looked like, and so relied on European characterization? Or are you saying that the Ethiopians simply kowtowed to their European masters?
According to Stewartsynopsis, Hebrews have been in Ethiopia since ancient times.
The Tribe of Judah--the Ethiopian Jews are descended from Jews who accompanied Menelik, the son of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, from Jerusalem to Ethiopia. More scientific theories place the Falasha in the Agau family of tribes. Isaiah 11:11 strongly implies that there was an established Ethiopian Jewish community in the days of that prophet, approximately 740 BC. European Jews and others in different parts of the world were barely aware of the Falasha for many years. The Falasha thought they were the only remaining Jews. They continued to follow Judaism as it was practiced before the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. Most Westerners and Protestant churchmen learned of the existence of the Ethiopian Jews from James Bruce's five-volume work, Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile, published in Edinburgh in 1790.
I am saying that they depicted figures based on their conversion to Christianity and the lore of Christianity that identified these figures as white to begin with as an artistic tradition. All along the Nile Valley you will find ancient Churches with white images of saints, angels and the holy family. This is nothing new or strange. Seeing as the Byzantines introduced this religion to the Ethiopians, it would only make sense that those Byzantine/Coptic bibles and images that were introduced to Ethiopia would have had white skin.
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They all laughed at Christopher Columbus When he said the world was round They all laughed when Edison recorded sound They all laughed at Wilbur and his brother When they said that man could fly
They told Marconi Wireless was a phony It's the same old cry They laughed at me wanting you Said I was reaching for the moon But oh, you came through Now they'll have to change their tune
They all said we never could be happy They laughed at us and how! But ho, ho, ho! Who's got the last laugh now?
They all laughed at Rockefeller Center Now they're fighting to get in They all laughed at Whitney and his cotton gin They all laughed at Fulton and his steamboat Hershey and his chocolate bar
Ford and his Lizzie Kept the laughers busy That's how people are They laughed at me wanting you Said it would be, "Hello, Goodbye." And oh, you came through Now they're eating humble pie
They all said we'd never get together Darling, let's take a bow For ho, ho, ho! Who's got the last laugh? Hee, hee, hee! Let's at the past laugh Ha, ha, ha! Who's got the last laugh now?"
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Doug M - I am saying that they depicted figures based on their conversion to Christianity and the lore of Christianity that identified these figures as white to begin with as an artistic tradition. All along the Nile Valley you will find ancient Churches with white images of saints, angels and the holy family. This is nothing new or strange. Seeing as the Byzantines introduced this religion to the Ethiopians, it would only make sense that those Byzantine/Coptic bibles and images that were introduced to Ethiopia would have had white skin.
Like I said above: So are you saying that the Ethiopians simply kowtowed to their European masters?
Doug, you seem to be hemming-n-hawing; but you can't have it both ways. Ethiopians knew that Hebrews were Black people, hell some of their own population was Hebrews: Ethiopians knew that Jesus was suppose to be a Hebrew. YET they still depicted him as a White person. It seems clear to me, either they were VERY scared of the Greeks and Romans, or they were OREO'S.
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Egmond - have you tried to track down any of the paintings from the upcoming Walters Art Museum event that I posted above?
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quote:Originally posted by Mike111: Egmond - have you tried to track down any of the paintings from the upcoming Walters Art Museum event that I posted above?
[Cosimo de Medici, son of the man who started the dynasty]
Is this one of them? While I studied Medici portraits and personal descriptions I developed the idea of a 'fixed mulatto race.' The portraits are a mix of more realistic and whitened portraits of coloured folks. As I wrote; it boils down to the definition of Black. To me Maria Salvati, as well as the little girl is black. The family De Medici was black and married black. I found that there is a tradition of not idealising or 'whitening' small children. I also think that they were happy when a child with Classical African looks popped out, because it proved there is truly Blue blood in the family’s bloodline. For some time the little girl was over painted and not visible. Then they had it restored, but wanting to show that the child was Cosimo, to fetch a higher price. The reason for this over paint was explained as a rift in the family. But I belief that the afrocentric look of the girl was considered a problem as these eurocentrist still regard this family as white. So they covered her face. Now off course they say that only Alessando was (half-) black which I disagree with. They are a typical black family from the coloured race that took power with the Renaissance.
[Lorenzo de Medici: this is the type we find on these Russian icons. He does not look white to me!]
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Nice work Egmond, the woman and child is supposed to be one of the featured items of the exhibit. I hope you didn't put too much stock in the B.S. at the site that you linked to. Even when White people claim that they are coming clean - they STILL LIE!
BTW - Ever wonder why, in their explanations the first one was ALWAYS a Slave? Like I said, they LIE. Always!
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quote:Originally posted by Mike111: Doug M - I am saying that they depicted figures based on their conversion to Christianity and the lore of Christianity that identified these figures as white to begin with as an artistic tradition. All along the Nile Valley you will find ancient Churches with white images of saints, angels and the holy family. This is nothing new or strange. Seeing as the Byzantines introduced this religion to the Ethiopians, it would only make sense that those Byzantine/Coptic bibles and images that were introduced to Ethiopia would have had white skin.
Like I said above: So are you saying that the Ethiopians simply kowtowed to their European masters?
Doug, you seem to be hemming-n-hawing; but you can't have it both ways. Ethiopians knew that Hebrews were Black people, hell some of their own population was Hebrews: Ethiopians knew that Jesus was suppose to be a Hebrew. YET they still depicted him as a White person. It seems clear to me, either they were VERY scared of the Greeks and Romans, or they were OREO'S.
You asked the question and I gave you the answer. I wasn't there so I have no idea whether they were forced to paint these images white or whether it was simply their own choice. There are also quite black African images from the same time period so the most likely answer is that it was artistic choice by the artist. Like I said in my original post, some artists STILL paint those images with very light skin. I doubt that this has anything to do with Byzantine "masters".
quote:Originally posted by Mike111: Egmond - have you tried to track down any of the paintings from the upcoming Walters Art Museum event that I posted above?
[Cosimo de Medici, son of the man who started the dynasty]
Is this one of them? While I studied Medici portraits and personal descriptions I developed the idea of a 'fixed mulatto race.' The portraits are a mix of more realistic and whitened portraits of coloured folks. As I wrote; it boils down to the definition of Black. To me Maria Salvati, as well as the little girl is black. The family De Medici was black and married black. I found that there is a tradition of not idealising or 'whitening' small children. I also think that they were happy when a child with Classical African looks popped out, because it proved there is truly Blue blood in the family’s bloodline. For some time the little girl was over painted and not visible. Then they had it restored, but wanting to show that the child was Cosimo, to fetch a higher price. The reason for this over paint was explained as a rift in the family. But I belief that the afrocentric look of the girl was considered a problem as these eurocentrist still regard this family as white. So they covered her face. Now off course they say that only Alessando was (half-) black which I disagree with. They are a typical black family from the coloured race that took power with the Renaissance.
[Lorenzo de Medici: this is the type we find on these Russian icons. He does not look white to me!]
Actually Edmond you are still telling lies and half truths. The only person in any of those portraits with African blood is the little girl. The GIRL is the daughter of Alessandro De Medici, who was of mixed ancestry. Therefore it makes sense that the girl would have African features. But that does not make the entire family of DeMedici into mixed Africans. That is NON sense.
quote: Along with her father Alessandro de Medici's uniquely racial place in history, Giulia de Medici's portrait could also prove of some importance since an apologia for her blackness forms the basis of the iconographical elements of the painting. Due more than likely to Giulia de Medici's social position as a princess and the descendant of a number of popes, whoever assisted the artist with the symbolism he used obtained it from the Neo platonic concept of God as Divine Darkness still current in the theology of the time. Probably the most readily available exposition of this particularly Franciscan brand of mysticism was St. Bonaventure's Itenarium mentis in Deum orThe Soul's Journey to God. To fully appreciate the symbolism that was attempted in this portrait it should be pointed out that the Medici were in religious state matters, officially devoted to St. Francis.
quote:Like I said in my original post, some artists STILL paint those images with very light skin. I doubt that this has anything to do with Byzantine "masters".
Talk about half truths. It may not have anything to do with Byzantine but Jesuit masters. The ancient churches with white images in them today are recent corruptions. Ashra Kweisi video on African origins of Christianity talks about this.
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What's this about Euros introducing Christianity to Abyssinia? Officially Abyssinia's ruler imported it from Syria via a slave. No? And what's to say some of the population unofficially were already practicing it as an export from Sudan, remember Philip and the Aithiopian (Sudani) royal official written up in the Greek Scriptures Christianity's holiest texts?
quote:Originally posted by Doug M: I would say it is a stylized peacock/gryphon/bird of some sort.
Thank You (both)I couldn't figure out whether that was a plume or a flower over it's head. It appears that there's a barely visible egg in the side of the beak too.
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Egmond – The post by Doug (supposedly Written and Researched by Mario de Valdes y Cocom an historian of the African diaspora). Didn’t really strike me as right, so I decided to do a little digging of my own. As I always say, “Whites Lie” so of course there was some surprises.
Cosimo di Giovanni de' Medici
Cosimo di Giovanni de' Medici (September 27, 1389 – August 1, 1464), was the first of the Medici political dynasty, de facto rulers of Florence during most of the Italian Renaissance; also known as "Cosimo 'the Elder'". Born in Florence, Cosimo inherited both his wealth and his flair for business from his father, Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici. In 1415 he accompanied the Antipope John XXIII at the council of Constance, and in the same year he was named Priore of the Republic. Later he acted frequently as ambassador, showing a prudence for which he became renowned. On his death in 1464 at Careggi, Cosimo was succeeded by his son Piero 'the Gouty'.
Piero 'the Gouty'
In 1444 Piero married the wise, tolerant and cultured Lucrezia Tornabuoni (1425-1482), a link to the old Florentine nobility. Piero had two sons, Lorenzo and Giuliano,
Lorenzo de' Medici
Lorenzo de' Medici (1 January 1449 – 9 April 1492) was an Italian statesman and de facto ruler of the Florentine Republic during the Italian Renaissance. Known as Lorenzo the Magnificent (Lorenzo il Magnifico) by contemporary Florentines, he was a diplomat, politician and patron of scholars, artists, and poets. His life coincided with the high point of the early Italian Renaissance; his death marked the end of the Golden Age of Florence. The fragile peace he helped maintain between the various Italian states collapsed with his death.
Lorenzo married twice - Lorenzo first married Clarice Orsini by proxy on February 7, 1469. She was a daughter of Giacomo Orsini, Lord of Monterotondo and Bracciano by his wife and cousin Maddalena Orsini. They had nine children:
Lucrezia de' Medici Piero di Lorenzo de' Medici Maddalena di Lorenzo de' Medici Pope Leo X Luisa de' Medici Contessina de' Medici Giuliano di Lorenzo de' Medici
His first son and his political heir, Piero di Lorenzo de' Medici (Piero 'the Unfortunate'), squandered his father's patrimony and brought down his father's dynasty in Florence. Another Medici, his brother Giovanni, restored it, but it was only made wholly secure again on the accession of a distant relative from a branch line of the family, Cosimo I de' Medici.
Piero de' Medici
Piero de' Medici (February 15, 1472 – December 28, 1503), called Piero the Unfortunate, was the Gran maestro of Florence from 1492 until his exile in 1494. Born in Florence, Piero di Lorenzo de' Medici was the oldest son of Lorenzo de' Medici (the Magnificent) and Clarice Orsini, and older brother of Pope Leo X.
Piero married Alfonsina Orsini in 1488. She was a daughter of Roberto Orsini, Count of Tagliacozzo and Caterina Sanseverino. They had two children:
Lorenzo II, Duke of Urbino (September 12, 1492 - May 4, 1519). {MAKE NOTE: Lorenzo II, Duke of Urbino STARTS THE NEXT LINE!!!!!!}
Clarice de' Medici (1493 - May 3, 1528). (She married Filippo Strozzi the Younger (1488 - 1538).
Daughter Lucrezia di Lorenzo de' Medici
Lucrezia de' Medici (4 August 1470 - between 10 and November 15 1553) was the eldest daughter of Lorenzo de' Medici and Clarice Orsini She married on the 10 September 1489 to Jacopo Salviati. By Salviati, she had 10 children, some of who were of great importance for the history of Renaissance Europe:
Her son Giovanni Salviati, was a cardinal from 1517 until his death. Her portrait was considered (as a newborn) as the baby Jesus in Our Lady of the Magnificat of Sandro Botticelli
Daughter Maria Salviati (1499 - 1543), married to Giovanni dalle Bande Nere. This marriage united the main branch and Popolano branch of the Medici family. His son, Cosimo, was named to lead Florence after the death of Duke Alessandro de' Medici
Maria Salviati c. 1537 A.D. and Giulia de' medici; see next page
Maria died on December 29, 1543 - note the other picture of her six years later, just before her death (Wiki). It's not the same woman.
Maria’s husband Giovanni de' Medici, also known as Giovanni dalle Bande Nere (April 5, 1498 - November 30, 1526) was an Italian condottiero, (A mercenary leader).
Giovanni dalle Bande Nere
Cosimo I de' Medici was their only child
Cosimo I de' Medici
Cosimo I de' Medici (June 12, 1519 – April 21, 1574) was Duke of Florence from 1537 to 1574, reigning as the first Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1569. Cosimo was born in Florence, the son of the famous condottiere Giovanni dalle Bande Nere from Forlì and Maria Salviati. Cosimo came to power at 17, when Duke Alessandro de' Medici was assassinated in 1537, as Alessandro's only male issue was illegitimate. He was from a different branch of the family, and so far had lived in Mugello, being almost unknown in Florence: however, many of the influential men in the city favored him, in some cases perhaps hoping to rule through him, taking advantage of his age. However, as Benedetto Varchi famously put it "One bill had the glutton in mind, and another the innkeeper". Cosimo proved strong-willed, astute and ambitious, and soon rejected the clause he had signed, which entrusted much of the power to a council of Forty-Eight.
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Lorenzo II di Piero de' Medici (September 12, 1492 – May 4, 1519) was the ruler of Florence from 1513 to his untimely death from syphilis in 1519. He was also Duke of Urbino from 1516 to 1519. Born in Florence, he was a son of Piero di Lorenzo de' Medici and Alfonsina Orsini. His paternal grandparents were Lorenzo the Magnificent and Clarice Orsini.
His maternal grandparents were Roberto Orsini, Conte Tagliacozzo and Catherine San Severino. Niccolò Machiavelli dedicated The Prince to Lorenzo to inform him of tactics to use in unifying Italy, though the entire intent behind this dedication is shrouded in mystery.
Lorenzo II di Piero de' Medici Married Madeleine de La Tour d'Auvergne (c. 1495? – April 28, 1519) was a penultimate representative of the senior branch of the house de La Tour d'Auvergne. She married Duke Lorenzo II de' Medicis in Château d'Amboise on May 5, 1518.
Madeleine's parents were Jean III de La Tour (1467–March 28, 1501), Count of Auvergne and Lauraguais, and Jeanne de Bourbon-Vendôme (1465–1511).
She died in Italy shortly before her husband, of the plague, having just given birth to a daughter, Catherine de' Medici (1519–1589), the future Queen Consort of France.
Madeleine's elder sister Anne, who inherited Auvergne and married John Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany, outlived Madeleine by five years but died childless, after which the Counties of Auvergne and Boulogne as well as the barony of La Tour passed to Madeleine's daughter Catherine de' Medici and then to the French crown.
Madeleine de La Tour d'Auvergne
They had two children Catherine de' Medici and Alessandro de' Medici, Duke of Florence (said to be illegitimate)
Catherine de' Medici
Catherine de' Medici (April 13, 1519 – January 5, 1589) was born in Florence, Italy, as Caterina Maria Romula di Lorenzo de' Medici. Her parents, Lorenzo II de' Medici, Duke of Urbino, and Madeleine de la Tour d'Auvergne, Countess of Boulogne, both died within weeks of her birth. In 1533, at the age of fourteen, Caterina married Henry, second son of King Francis I of France and Queen Claude. Under the gallicised version of her name, Catherine de Médicis, she was queen consort of King Henry II of France from 1547 to 1559.
Alessandro de' Medici
Alessandro de' Medici (July 22, 1510 – January 6, 1537) called "il Moro" ("the Moor"), Duke of Penne and also Duke of Florence (from 1532), ruler of Florence from 1530 until 1537. Though illegitimate, he was the last member of the "senior" branch of the Medici to rule Florence and the first to be a hereditary duke.
Born in Florence, he was recognized as the illegitimate son of Lorenzo II de' Medici (grandson of Lorenzo de' Medici, the Magnificent), but many scholars today believe him to be in fact the illegitimate son of Giulio de' Medici (later Pope Clement VII)- nephew of Lorenzo de' Medici, the Magnificent. Historians (such as Christopher Hibbert) believe he had been born to a black or Moorish serving-woman in the Medici household, identified in documents as Simonetta da Collavechio. The nickname is said to derive from his features
When Emperor Charles V sacked Rome in 1527, the Florentines took advantage of the turmoil in Italy to reinstall the Republic; both Alessandro and Ippolito fled, along with the rest of the Medici and their main supporters, including the Pope's regent, Cardinal Silvio Passerini, with the exception of the eight-year-old Caterina de' Medici, who was left behind. Michelangelo, then occupied in creating a funerary chapel for the Medici, initially took charge of building fortifications around Florence in support of the Republic; he later temporarily fled the city. Clement eventually made his peace with the Emperor, and with the support of Imperial troops, the Republic was overwhelmed after a lengthy siege, and the Medici were restored to power in the summer of 1530. Clement assigned Florence to nineteen-year-old Alessandro, who had been made a duke, an appointment that was purchased from Charles. He arrived in Florence to take up his rule on July 5, 1531, and was created hereditary Duke of Florence 9 months later by the Emperor (for Tuscany lay outside the Papal States), there by signalling the end of the Republic
the Emperor supported Alessandro against the republicans. In 1533, he married his natural daughter Margaret of Austria to Alessandro. For his own inclinations, Alessandro seems to have remained faithful to one mistress, Taddea Malespina, who bore his only children Giulio de' Medici (c. 1540-1600), who also had illegitimate issue, and Giulia de' Medici, who married her cousin Bernardetto de' Medici, Signore di Ottaiano, and had issue.
Four years later his distant cousin Lorenzino de' Medici, nick-named "Lorenzaccio" ("bad Lorenzo"), assassinated him. (This event is the subject of Alfred de Musset's play "Lorenzaccio.") Lorenzino entrapped Alessandro through the ruse of a promised arranged sexual encounter with Lorenzino's sister Laudomia, a beautiful widow. For fear of starting an uprising if news of his death got out, Medici officials wrapped Alessandro's corpse in a carpet and secretly carried it to the cemetery of San Lorenzo, where it was hurriedly buried.
Lorenzino, in a declaration published later, said that he had killed Alessandro for the sake of the republic. When the anti-Medici faction failed to rise, Lorenzino fled to Venice, where he was killed in 1548. The Medici supporters (called "Palleschi" from the balls on the Medici arms) ensured that power then passed to Cosimo I de' Medici, the first of the "junior" branch of the Medici to rule Florence.
Alessandro was survived by two natural children of Taddea's: a son, Giulio (aged four at the time of his father's death) married to Lucrezia Gaetani, and a daughter, Giulia married firstly to Francesco Cantelmo, the Count of Alvito and the Duke of Popoli and then Bernadetto de' Medici, prince of Ottaiano.
Giulia de' medici - age 24
Giulia Romola di Alessandro de' Medici[1] (c. 1535 – c. 1588) was the illegitimate, possibly biracial, daughter of Alessandro de' Medici, Duke of Florence and his mistress Taddea Malaspina who was an Italian marchesa, (an Italian noblewoman next in rank above a count : a marquess).
Her mother Taddea Malaspina (1505 - ?) was an Italian marchesa. She was the mistress of Alessandro de' Medici, Duke of Florence from the early 1530s to about 1537 and was likely the mother of at least two of his children, Giulio di Alessandro de' Medici and Giulia de' Medici. Giulio de' Medici was associated with the Malaspina family at different points throughout his life.[1] Taddea was the younger daughter of Antonio Alberico Malaspina, sovereign marchese of Massa,[2] and Lucrezia d'Este. She married Count Giambattista Boiardo di Scandiano.[3] After his death and the death of her father, Malaspina lived with her mother in Florence and had a number of lovers, including Alessandro. Her sister Ricciarda inherited the title after their father's death. Through Ricciarda's marriage, the family was related to Pope Innocent VIII. Ricciarda was probably also one of Alessandro de' Medici's lovers.
Giulia, following her father's assassination, she was reared at the court of Cosimo I de' Medici and married advantageously twice. She is an ancestor of many of today's European royal houses.
A second advantageous marriage was arranged for her soon after with Bernadetto de' Medici, a first cousin of Cosimo I. She married him on August 14, 1559. Their son Alessandro, who was named for her father, was born the following year on December 17, 1560. During the early years of her marriage to Bernadetto, they entertained lavishly and she may have accompanied her husband on diplomatic missions.[3]
Sometime in the 1560s, her relationship with her former guardian may have cooled when Giulia insisted that she be treated as an equal to Cosimo I's mistress, who was regarded with general disdain at court. Other sources indicate that she and her husband were still in good standing with the court when they moved to Naples in 1567. There they battled successfully to win the title and lands to the principality of Ottaiano, which their descendants hold today. Through her son's descendants, Giulia is an ancestor of most Italian noble houses and of the Habsburg and Bonaparte royal lines.
Giulia also had an older full brother, Giulio di Alessandro de' Medici, and at least one half-sister, Porzia de' Medici.
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^^^Sure was a lot of color in those two lines - and that's only what they admit to. And through them, most of the royal houses in Europe. LMAO!Posts: 22721 | Registered: Oct 2005
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