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This thesis’ main goal is to answer the question: from where did Peter Paul Rubens’s Life of Marie de Medici Cycle come? Previous literature has focused on the content of the twenty-four canvases of the Medici Cycle and their meanings. However, they have not viewed the Medici Cycle as part of a bigger whole and thus part of a larger agenda that was symbolised through Marie de Medici’s construction and patronage of her own palace in Paris, the Luxembourg Palace. Originally planned to emulate the Palazzo Pitti in Florence in which Marie was raised, the Palace represents the Florentine agenda that was prevalent throughout Marie’s patronage after her first exile at the hands of her son, Louis XIII, in 1617. By viewing the Luxembourg Palace as a whole and exploring the Medici Cycle’s placement there, this thesis will show that Marie was looking back to Florence for guidance when constructing her own image as wife, widow, mother and regent. The first chapter places the Medici Cycle firmly within the Luxembourg Palace and the themes prevalent throughout the decoration there, acknowledging Marie’s dependence on Medici architectural and pictorial projects when developing her own programme of praise. The second chapter looks to how the other Medici queen of France, Catherine de Medici, portrayed herself when faced with the same obstacles as Marie, fifty years prior: motherhood, widowhood, regency, foreignness, gender and power. In this chapter it becomes evident that Marie used many of the same strategies as Catherine, yet far surpassed her in her own aggressive self-promotion, as evidenced by the nature of the Medici Cycle. Chapter three focuses on the similarities between the Medici Cycle and sixteenth and seventeenth century entries and festivals, especially those in Florence staged in celebration of dynastic marriages. The chapter answers the question of whether the Medici Cycle was in fact, finally, Marie’s triumphal entry into Paris. The final chapter looks to Marie and her image following her final exile in 1630. It highlights the importance of the Medici Cycle on Marie’s public image and how it influenced later depictions and laudations of Marie, specifically in her entries into Brussels, Antwerp, Amsterdam and London. This chapter will show that Marie still had the same patronage agenda following her final exile and how the imagery of the Medici Cycle became part of the symbolism and vocabulary in Marie’s patronage and image that shaped opinions of Marie far past her death in 1642 to how her image is perceived today.

This thesis discusses Lorenzo de' Medici's era and literary work. In the first part, Lorenzo's personage is introduced and put into historical and cultural context. Given its importance for social changes, a separate chapter is dedicated to humanism and its eminent personalities. Neoplatonism and Lorenzo's patronage and cultural activities are also mentioned. The second part of the thesis is dedicated to Lorenzo de' Medici's own literary work, paying particular attention to his comical poems inspired by rustic life, especially some of his carnival chants (canti carnascialechi) and the poem Nencia da Barberino, which are then analyzed. In the conclusion, this study briefly deals with the controversy caused by the connection between Lorenzo's poetry and his government. Keywords: Lorenzo de' Medici, humanism, Neoplatonism, volgare, patronage, comical and realistic poetry, carnival chants.

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Gegenstand der Arbeit sind Darstellungen, die dem Umfeld zweier Heiligenkulte in Florenz angehören und auf Bestellungen der Medici, ihrer Freunde und Verbündeten zurückzuführen sind. Den ursprünglich römischen Kult seiner Namenspatrone, der hll. Cosmas und Damian hat erst Cosimo de’ Medici in Florenz bekannt gemacht. Dabei erwies sich das Fehlen einer nennenswerten Florentinischen Tradition als maßgeblicher Faktor seiner Wirkkraft. Fra’ Angelico, Filippo Lippi und andere Künstler konnten formal neuartige Bildlösungen entwickeln, deren Inhalte sich als Projektionsflächen der politischen und geistigen Florentiner Eliten eigneten. Cosimo etablierte auf diese Weise ein Netzwerk persönlicher Repräsentation, das nicht allein die Barriere zwischen privatem und öffentlichem Raum zu durchdringen vermochte, sondern auch demonstrativ über die in Florenz herkömmliche Beschränkung auf das eigene Stadtviertel hinausgriff. Mit dem Generationswechsel nach Cosimos Tod erforderten die veränderten Machtverhältnisse auch einen Wechsel in der Strategie des Kults. In der zweiten Hälfte des 15. Jahrhunderts tritt ein anderer Kult, jener der hll. Drei Könige in den Vordergrund. Dieser besaß im Gegensatz zur Verehrung von Cosmas und Damian in Florenz eine eigenständige, spezifisch republikanische Tradition. Unter deren Schutz konnte eine kontinuierliche Politisierung althergebrachter Rituale und die Übernahme der Kontrolle durch die Medici stattfinden. Auch in diesem Fall zeigt die Analyse der erhaltenen Darstellungen, dass sie den Auftraggebern als Loyalitätsnachweis dienten und die Zugehörigkeit zum Klientel der Medici und damit der städtischen Eliten markierten. Noch in der Mitte des 16. Jahrhunderts griff Herzog Cosimo I. auf strategische Elemente und Motive des Kults zurück, nun zunehmend aus dem sakralen Kontext gelöst und Bestandteil höfischer Panegyrik. / The Images observed here are mainly of two religious cults commissioned by members, friends and allies of the Medici family. In the early 15th century Cosimo de’ Medici following the example of his father introduced his patron saints, Cosmas and Damian into his native city of Florence. Prior to this the cult of these saints was of no vital importance outside Rome. Thus there was no eminent pictorial tradition of their images which proved an important factor in the cult’s success. Fra’ Angelico, Filippo Lippi and other artists were able to develop a new imagery that allowed members of Florence’s political and humanistic circles to identify with. Cosimo established a network of personal representation which did not only penetrate the barriers between private and public space but ostentatiously reached beyond the customary boundaries of a family’s home quarter. After Cosimo’s death in 1464 political instability resulted in a change of strategy. In the second half of the 15th century a different cult, that of the Three Magi, moves into the center of medicean interest. Contrary to Saints Cosmas and Damian the cult of the Magi had an ancient and marked republican tradition in Florence. Under cover of this tradition the Medici party managed to take over control of the confraternity of the Magi and wield its influential instruments to their own benefit. As with images of Saints Cosmas and Damian those depicting the Adoration of the Magi were used as a confirmation of loyalty to the Medici and their faction. Even in the 16th century Duke Cosimo I. went back to elements and motifs of his predecessors’ strategy. Rather than reviving the cult of Saints Cosmas and Damian however they are used to give evidence of political and dynastical continuity.

Vincenzo Danti (1530-1576), Perugian by birth and training, relocated to Florence in 1557 to work for the Medici court. While there, Danti completed visual and textual works oriented to the interests of Duke Cosimo I de’ Medici (1519-1574) and his son, Prince Francesco (1541-1587). Danti also participated in the literary and arts academies that were associated with the ducal program of establishing Florentine cultural supremacy. Danti’s multi-disciplinary activities during his tenure at the Medici court demonstrate his hopes to secure long-term patronage and to become the primary sculptor to the Medici dukes. This project represents both a reappraisal of Vincenzo Danti’s career and an examination of the ways that artists at the Medici court positioned themselves in relationship to their patrons and to one another. / text

Ma thèse repose sur la construction du pouvoir médicéen dans les spectacles de cour et les manifestations publiques de Laurent le Magnifique à la mort de Cosme II de Médicis. Montrer que la fête a consacré le pouvoir médicéen à Florence et sur la scène européenne est l’axe principal de ma réflexion. L’établissement de ce pouvoir et l’affirmation d’une identité médicéenne sont indissociables de la politique culturelle menée par les Médicis qui souhaitaient apparaître comme des mécènes à part entière et ainsi participer à l’admiration vouée à leur cité. Le thème de la métamorphose de la cité florentine et de ses palais, véhiculé par la fête, renvoie à la métamorphose du pouvoir médicéen et donc à son affirmation progressive. A l’occasion des nombreux événements qui marquaient la cité florentine, la fête introduisit de nouvelles façons de penser et de voir et malgré son caractère éphémère, elle permit aux Médicis d’asseoir leur pouvoir en leur conférant un prestige certain. / My thesis addresses the issue of the Medici’s power through the performances before the court and public events from the times of Lorenzo the Magnificent to the death of Cosmo II. Demonstrating that festivities contributed to consolidate the Medici’s power in Florence is the goal of my work.The establishment of the Medici’s power and the assertion of their identity can’t be separated from their cultural politics as they wished to appear as patrons and partake in the admiration people had for their city. The theme of the transformation of the Florentine city and its palaces, through celebrations, echoes that of the transformation of the Medici’s power and thus, reflects its gradual assertion.Through the many events which set the tempo of the Florentine city, festivities introduced new ways of thinking and considering; despite its ephemeral aspect, celebration allowed the Medici to establish their authority while endowing them with prestige.

The ability of Mercuric Iodide (HgI2) to function as a highly efficient radiation detector at room temperature has generated great interest and has triggered further studies on this difficult material. This property is expected to enable significant enhancements to a far-ranging variety of applications and systems. HgI2 devices have shown superior performance at room temperature compared to elemental Si or Ge devices, which require to be cooled down to liquid nitrogen temperature when used as nuclear radiation detectors. While substantial studies have been conducted on single crystal HgI2, polycrystalline HgI2 remains a comparatively less studied form of this material. The primary use of HgI2 is as a direct radiation detector. It can also be used in applications with a scintillator intermediate to generate visible light from incident nuclear radiation. Hence its response to visible light can be used to study the electronic properties of HgI2 polycrystalline films. The films are deposited on TEC-15 LOF glass with a Tin Oxide(Sn02) coating which acts as the growth surface. It also acts as the front contact with Palladium (Pd) being the back contact. Wire leads are attached to the palladium for electrical contact. The deposited films are circular in shape with a diameter of 2.5cm with thickness ranging from 50 to 600µm. A maximum of 7 devices are contacted at various points on every film. For the measurements documented in this thesis, a tungsten-halogen lamp and an Oriel 1/4m grating monochromator are used as a light source. The incident flux on the sample is determined using a Si photodiode as reference. Device performance for both single crystal as well as polycrystalline films is documented. We have attempted to identify a set of optimum growth parameters using these measurements. For a film to be considered favorably, not only should the individual devices show high quantum efficiencies and low dark currents, but the response of all devices on the same film should be uniform. A number of films are studied and the optimum film deposition conditions are commented upon. A powerful semiconductor device simulation tool, MEDICItm, is used to simulate the photoresponse of these films. The simulations are compared to the measurements and the transport and light absorption parameters of the polycrystalline films are determined.

This dissertation explores the primary sites of collecting and display commissioned by Francesco I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (r. 1564-87). These sites ─ Francesco's studiolo in the Palazzo Vecchio and the nearby Uffizi Gallery ─ established precedents for the physical layout of newly emerging museums in early modern Europe, as scholars have suggested. But, as this dissertation asserts, Francesco's communication of authority through these sites significantly contributed to the changing expectations in the 16th century of a ruler's proper engagement with culture. Displaying objects connoting knowledge, taste, and wealth, these sites demonstrated Francesco's privileged access to such objects and his mastery over the scientific processes involved in their creation. Emphasizing the prince's knowledge, this approach contrasted with earlier rulers' reliance on images of direct military power and laid the groundwork for the merging of personal and private space that would come to characterize the full expression of absolutism across Europe. Chapter One examines the multi-faceted assertions of authority in Francesco's portraits, a strategy reflecting his embrace of images and spaces to communicate personal and political identity. Chapter Two addresses his private studiolo, which represented Francesco's participation in scientific, contemplative, and collecting activities among ruling elites. Chapter Three examines the subtle but profound shift in the meaning of the collection when, in 1583, Francesco created the Galleria degli Uffizi, a significant contribution in the history of European museums. Established independent of the prince's residence, the new museum represented Francesco's most powerful expression of cultural politics, as dignitaries visited the impressively decorated gallery and experienced first-hand its political assertions. The dissertation concludes by examining the impact of Francesco's museological precedents on other Italian rulers. Sites in Florence and Mantua demonstrate the continued attractiveness of Francesco's cultural expressions of authority to 17th-century rulers, as new expectations of a ruler's engagement with the arts emerge. Princely galleries become an increasingly common demonstration of authority, with many examples emulating the Uffizi's design. The conclusion affirms Francesco's legacy in binding the demonstration of artistic and scientific knowledge to political authority in the early Seicento.