An Expression of Piety: The Last Will of Cardinal Paolo Emilio Sfondrato (1561-1618)

An Expression of Piety: The Last Will of Cardinal Paolo Emilio Sfondrato (1561-1618)Author(s): Kate GallagherSource: Papers of the British School at Rome, Vol. 67 (1999), pp. 303-321Published by: British School at RomeStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40310996 .

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AN EXPRESSION OF PIETY: THE LAST WILL OF CARDINAL PAOLO EMILIO SFONDRATO

(1561-1618)1

The reconstruction of an historical figure requires the examination of a wide range of archival material. Of this, the last will and testament, although a formal legal document, can be amongst the most revealing. Paolo Emilio Sfondrato, the titular cardinal of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, cancelled an earlier will he had made in 1601 and set out the terms of his last will and testament in 1615.2 There is no evidence to suggest that he was ill at the time. He did not die until three years later. At the age of 54 Sfondrato had perhaps reached the stage when he wanted to be ready for his death.

The copy reproduced in the Appendix below was drawn up by Sfondrato's notary, Christantis Roscioli. It is kept in the State Archives in Rome, filed amongst the wills and donations relevant to Antimi Palmerij, the notary who succeeded Roscioli in 1616.3 Roscioli made a second copy of the will which is in the Sfondrato family archives, now in the public library of Como.4 There are several other copies of Sfondrato's last will amongst the documents from the church and monastery of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, now in the State Archives in Rome.5 The various copies, which are by dif-

1 The material for this paper forms part of a doctoral dissertation, being undertaken at the University of Melbourne, on the art and architectural patronage of Cardinal Paolo Emilio Sfondrato. I gratefully acknowledge the assistance of scholarships from the Italian Government and the University of Melbourne for this project. I would like to thank David Marshall, my supervisor, and Iris Jones for checking the transcription. My sincere thanks are also extended to both Maryvelma Smith O'Neil and Ilaria Bignamini: their enthusiasm for the study of art history is an inspiration.

The will of 1601 was drawn up by Sfondrato's notary, Mainardus. For the notice that this earlier will was consigned to Mainardus, see Archivio di Stato di Roma (hereafter, ASR) Notari Cancellieri del Tribunale dell' Auditor Camerae, Testamenti e donazioni, voi. 22 (Mainardus 1601) fol. 133, 7 Aprile, 1601, 'Consignato testamento'. The actual will of 1601 has not been located. Sfondrato appears to have written his first will in 1597. For the con- signment of this will, see ASR, Notari Cancellieri del Tribunale dell' Auditor Camerae, Testamenti e donazioni, vol. 21, fol. 361 cited by S. Stacchioli, "Amor sacro e profano' nella Galleria Borghese', in Tiziano: amor sacro e profano (exhibition catalogue, Palazzo degli Esposizioni, Rome) (Milan, 1995), 59, n. 7.

See ASR, Notari Cancellieri del Tribunale dell' Auditor Camerae, Testamenti e donazioni, voi. 25 (Ufficio 3, Palmerius, 1616-1621), fols 131-5v.

4 See Biblioteca Comunale di Como (hereafter, BCC), Archivio Sfondrati, cart. XXXIII. For the copy which also records the enactment oí the will alter Stondrato s death in

1618, see ASR, Congregazioni Religiose Femminili (hereafter, Congr. Relig. Femm.), Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4073, fols 3v-9. There are five other copies in various hands in a busta which contains various documents relevant to Sfondrato. See ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4063 (Atti Diversi).

303



304 GALLAGHER

ferent hands, differ only in the way that certain words have been abbreviated, but the version that has been reproduced below is the only one which carries Sfondrato's signature.

The will begins with Sfondrato offering his soul to Christ, the Virgin Mary, Saint Cecilia, Saint Agnes and the various other saints to whom he had devoted himself during his life. On the day of his funeral, which he wants to be simple and without fuss, he asks that his manservant, Pacinello, distribute 100 scudi to the poor of Rome and another 100 scudi to the poor of Trastevere. He asks that his body be buried in the grave that he has prepared for himself in front of the confessio in the church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, and that 3,000 Masses be said for his soul.

The confessio, the place where Saint Cecilia's body was interred, received further mention in his will. He requests that a lay custodian be appointed to clean the marble and bronze decorations and keep the lamps lit around the saint's tomb. He asks that four chaplains keep watch over the church, and say Mass daily for his soul. One chaplain is to act specifically as the custodian of Saint Cecilia's body and must take care of the key to the chapel of the confessio.

During the late 1590s Sfondrato had begun restoring and redecorat- ing his titular church, Santa Cecilia in Trastevere.6 Antonio Bosio, who wrote a book at Sfondrato's behest to commemorate the whole project, says that Sfondrato wanted to construct a place for the church's collection of holy relics, many of which had been obtained by Sfondrato. Sfondrato deemed the area beneath the main altar, that is the confessio, to be the most suitable place for the reliquaries since it was where Pope Paschal I was supposed to have interred the bodies of Saint Cecilia and the other saints associated with her legend in ad 821 during the construc- tion of the church.7

Before work in the confessio proceeded, Sfondrato, who wanted to prove that the saints' bodies really had been interred there, had this area of the church excavated. The wall below the main altar, with its fenestella (the small opening into the confessio where a votive lamp had been kept alight), was dismantled. The pavement was demolished and the earth underneath it was

Sfondrato had begun excavating around the main altar and renovating the church as early as 1598. Given the proximity of 1600 it is probable that Sfondrato was in part motivated by a desire to make some impact on the Holy Year. See G. Morolli, in L. Tubello (ed.), Restauri a Roma, Santa Cecilia, Villa Doria Pamphili, Sant'Eusebio (Rome, 1988), 43, and P. Mangia Renda, in Roma 1300-1875. L'arte degli anni santi II (exhibition catalogue, Palazzo Venezia, Rome) (Milan, 1984), 219-20.

For this and the description of Sfondrato's renovation and redecoration of the church, see A. Bosio, Historia passionis B. Caeciliae virginis, Valeriani, Tiburtiì et Maximi martyrum necnon Urbani et Ludi pontiflcum et martyrum vitae atque paschalìs literae de eorundem sanc- torum corporum inventione et in Urbem translatione ... (Rome, 1600), 153-84.



CARDINAL PAOLO EMILIO SFONDRATO 305

removed. On 20 October 1599, just as he had hoped, the sarcophagus containing Saint Cecilia's body was unearthed. When the cypress coffin within the sarcophagus was opened, the saint's body was:

in the same place that we have read that she was placed in the tomb of Pope Paschal I ... One saw with admiration that the body was not extended like the dead in their tombs; but the very chaste virgin was lying on her right side, as on a bed, the knees tucked in with modesty, offering the aspect of a sleeping person.8

A few days later the coffins containing the relics of Valerian, Tiburtius, Maximus and Popes Urban and Lucian, the other saints associated with the legend of Saint Cecilia, were discovered close by. A month later the bodies were reinterred in the confessio with much pomp and ceremony.

In the reconstruction of the area around the main altar the level of the apse pavement was raised about half a metre and the steps which allowed access from the middle nave to the altar were removed.9 At the centre of this new higher wall the fenestella was substituted with a loculus, lined with black marble, into which the famous statue of Saint Cecilia (Fig. 1) by Stefano Maderno was placed.10

During this same period Sfondrato decided that after his death he would like to be buried in front of the confessio. A porphyry disc recording that Sfondrato lies below at the feet of Saint Cecilia was installed in front of Maderno's statue. Spaces were left in the inscription so that the date of Sfondrato's death could be filled in at the appropriate time.11

Once the bodies of the saints had been securely reinterred, work must have commenced in the area directly below the main altar. This area was completely altered in the late nineteenth century, but Sfondrato did not change the shape or size of the annular crypt that Pope Paschal I had

8 Translated from C. Baronio, Ármales Ecclesiatici 9 (Venice, 1602), 507. For the approximate height that the apse pavement was raised, see R. Krautheimer,

Corpus Basilicarum Christianarum Romae: the Early Christian Basilicas of Rome (IV-IX Cent.) I (Vatican City, 1937), 107.

A final payment of 65 scudi was made to Maderno for the statue on 16 December 1600 (ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, n. 4092 (Libro dei Mandati), 1600, no. 75). The statue would have been completed and in place before this date as it is described by Bosio. See Bosio, Historia passionis B. Caeciliae virginis (above, n. 7), 172. For studies of the statue, see M. Smith O'Neil, 'Stefano Maderno's 'Saint Cecilia': a seventeenth century Roman sculpture remeasured', Antologia di Belle Arti 25-6 (1985), 9-23, with further references.

11 The inscription on the porphyry disc, which is still in situ, reads, 'Paulus. Tituli. S. Caeciliae. S.R.E. Presb. Card. Sfondratus. Miserrime. Peccator. Atque. Eiusdem. Virginis. Humilis. Servus. Hie. Ad. Eius. Pedes. Hurniliter. Requiescit. Vixit. Annos. LVII. Menses. X. Dies. XXV. Obiit. Anno. MDCXVIII. Mense. Febr. Die. XIV. Orate. Deum. Pro Eo'. For the inscription with the spaces to be filled in after Sfondrato's death, see Bosio, Historia passionis B. Caeciliae virginis (above, n. 7), 182.



306 GALLAGHER

Fig. 1. Stefano Maderno, Saint Cecilia, 1599-1600, marble, Rome, Santa Cecilia in Trastevere. (Photo: author)

constructed.12 Three altars were installed in the front section: they were decorated with paintings of The Madonna and Child with Saint Agnes and The Mystic Marriage of Saint Catherine, by Giovanni Baglione, and a lunette of Saint Cecilia Dying by Francesco Vanni.13 A fourth altar, installed at the back of the confessio, was decorated with a painting of Saint Cecilia with her Companion Saints by Baglione.14 Although a payment made to Baglione in

12 G. Gio venale, 'Recherches architectoniques sur la basilique de S. Cecilia', Cosmos Catholicus. Le Monde Catholique Illustre 4 (1902), 660.

On Vanni's painting, see A. Nava Cellini, Stefano Maderno, Francesco Vanni e Guido Reni a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere', Paragone 211 (1969), 18-41, esp. pp. 30-3; S. Riedl, 'Zu Francesco Vannis Tatigkeit für Ròmische Auftraggeber', Mitteilungen des Kunsthistorisches Institutes in Florenz 22 (1978), 313-54, esp. pp. 317-18.

On Baglione's three paintings, see V. Martinelli, 'L'amor divino 'tutto ignudo5 di Giovanni Baglione e la cronologia dell'intermezzo caravaggesco', Arte Antica e Moderna 5 (1959), 82-96, esp. p. 91.




1603 has been connected to these altarpieces,15 a description in an untitled chronicle of the convent indicates that the paintings were ready by Saint Cecilia's feast-day, 22 November, 1600.16

By the end of his life, Sfondrato had filled the chapel in the confessio with precious objects such as silver figurines, brass lamps and candlesticks, hanging glass lanterns, jewel-encrusted gilt crucifixes and wall hangings of red and white silk, which must have enhanced the sacred and mystical quality of the saint's tomb.17

The will also outlines instructions for other reliquaries, including three made of silver which contained the heads of Valerian, Tiburtius and Maximus, that were kept in a cabinet in the third chapel on the right-hand side of the church. This cabinet could be seen from the nave through a large iron grate.18 Sfondrato left three keys to this chapel: one with the abbess of the monastery, the second with the deaconess and the third with the mis- tress of the novices. The chapel was only to be opened for cleaning, which was to be done only after the church was locked at night. When the reliquaries were displayed to the public they were not to be removed from their cabinet and care was to be taken that the exit from the chapel was kept locked.19

15 'Molto Magnifici Ss. Herrera Vi piacerà di pagare à Ms. Giovanni Baglione Pittore scudi centocinquanta moneta, quali sono per il prezzo di tre quadri, che egli ha fatti per servitio della chiesa di Santa Cecilia, che pigliandone ricevuta di Casa à 16 di Dicembre 1603'. See ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4092 (Libro dei Mandati), 1603, no. 51. On these paintings, see Martinelli, 'L'amor divino 'tutto ignudo' di Giovanni Baglione' (above, n. 14). 16 'L'Anno 1600 ... Detto Ill.mo Comincio a far dicorare sotto l'Altare mag. giorno et ferie la grotta più grande che nov.bre e la fece tutta dipingere vi fece quattro Altare uno con il quadro di S.ta Cecilia in Atto moribunda, l'altro di S.ta Caterina, il 3° di S.te Agnese, il quarto di S.to Urbano con tutti le altri S.li dentro a detti altari vi mise molte reliquie . . .'. See Untitled Chronicle in the Convent of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, fol. 49, cited by M. Smith O'Neil, Giovanni Baglione: Seventeenth Century Artist and Biographer of Artists (University of Oxford, D.Phil, thesis, 1989), 321. All four altarpieces were moved to the adjoining convent in 1898 prior to Cardinal Rampolla's excavation and reconstruction of the underground chapel. See C. Guglielmi, 'Intorno all'opera pittorica di Giovanni Baglione', Bollettino d'Arte 39 (4) (1954), 325, n. 27.

For an inventory taken in 1618 of the chapel in the confessio, see ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4073 (Inventario della confessione et propie in crvpta), fols 191v-5.

The collection remained in the church until 1935 when most of it was transferred to the Museo Sacro of the Vatican. See M. Fagiolo, in Roma 1300-1875 I (above, n. 6), 173.

The importance of safeguarding sacred relics is expressed in Charles Borromeo s 1577 treatise on building and decorating churches. See E. Voelker, Charles Borromeo 's 'Instructiones Fabricae et Supellectis Eccelsiasticiae', 1577. A Translation with Commentary and Analysis (Syracuse University, Ph.D. thesis, 1977), 207-16. A copy of this treatise is listed in the inventory of Sfondrato's library which was taken in 1618. See ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4073, fol. 129.



308 GALLAGHER

Sfondrato's will mentions a number of beneficiaries. The Discalced Carmelites,20 the Madonna di Loreto,21 the Monte Olivetani,22 the Jesuits,23 the church of Sant'Agnese fuori le mura, the church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva, the convent of San Paolo Converso in Milan,24 Cardinal Odoardo Farnese,25 Cardinal Benedetto Giustiniani26 and his younger sister Barbara27 are all to receive modest bequests, such as various paintings from his private collection. His universal or major heir is the church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere.28 Sfondrato requests that, after his remaining belongings have been sold and any debts at the time of his death have been settled, money be provided for the maintenance of the church and the security of the sacred relics housed within it.

20 The Order of the Discalced Brothers of the Blessed Virgin developed out of the sixteenth-century reforms inaugurated by Saint Teresa of Avila and Saint John of the Cross. Their mode of life was a return to the observance of the primitive Carmelite rule. They had their origins in Spain but soon spread to Italy and throughout Europe. In Rome they were based at the church of Santa Maria della Scala in Trastevere. In 1593 Pope Clement VIII estab- lished them as an independent order. In 1598 the flooding of the Tiber caused an enormous amount of damage to their monastery at Santa Maria della Scala. Cardinal Sfondrato provided the wood and financial assistance for the rebuilding of the monastery and he contributed money towards the building of the church during the early 1600s. On the order and Sfondrato's connection to it, see A. Fusciardi, Cenni storici sui Conventi dei PP. Carmelitani Scalzi della provincia romana (Rome, 1924), and A. Miagnosi Tantillo, 'I dipinti dell'eremo Carmelitano di S. Silvestro a Montecompatri', in Arte per i papi e i principi nella campagna romana: grande pittura del '600 e del '700 II (exhibition catalogue, Palazzo Venezia, Rome) (Rome, 1990), 55-66. For the payments Sfondrato made towards the building of the church, see ASR, Congregazioni Religioni Maschili, Carmelitani Scalzi, Santa Maria della Scala, b. 4 (Spese per la fabrica dal 1600-1608), fol. 2 and 10. My thanks to Arno Witte for this archival reference.

Cardinal Sfondrato was particularly devoted to the votive image of the Madonna di Loreto. See Sorelle Sfondrati, Vita di Madre Angelica Agata Sfondrati (unpublished manuscript composed by Agata's nieces between 1631 and 1635), 85 (page number refers to a twentieth- century transcript which is kept at the Istituto di Santa Rita di Roma; the original manuscript is kept in the Archivio Generalizio delle Angeliche di Roma, fondo antico, ms n. 17). During his lifetime Sfondrato made at least three visits to the Sanctuary at Loreto, where he presented the image with a ring valued at 500 scudi, a cross studded with emeralds and a precious dia- mond that was placed on the finger of the Baby Jesus. See L. Cardella, Memorie storiche de' Cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa V (Rome, 1793), 312. Sfondrato also kept a solid silver figurine of the Madonna di Loreto on the altar dedicated to Saint Cecilia in the chapel in the confessio. See ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4073 (Inventario della confessione et propie in crypta), fol. 192.

The Sfondrato family had been connected to the Monte Olivetani abbey of San Pietro in Civate in Lombardy for several generations. On a visit there in 1555 Niccolo Sfondrato found the monastery virtually derelict and occupied by only two monks. After consultations with the abbey of San Vittore in Milan it was decided that a number of Monte Olivetani monks should be sent to Civate and the old monastery repaired. During the 1590s Paolo Emilio had the monastery's sacred relics, seven rings from the chains of Saint Peter, transferred to the church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere. For Paolo Emilio's connection to the monastery, see below, n. 31. For the monastery and the family's connection to it, see M. Magistretti, Appunti per la storia dell'abbazia di Civate (Milan, 1898), 26-34 and 106. On Sfondrato's trans- ferral of the relics, see Bosio, Historia passionis B. Caeciliae virginis (above, n. 7), 181-2.




During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries it was more common for a cardinal to nominate a close blood relative, such as an uncle, cousin, nephew or son, as his major heir.29 Sfondrato's unusual request is testimony to the piety he had developed during the later part of his life and to the important role Saint Cecilia plays in the expression of that piety.

Sfondrato was made the titular cardinal of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere by his uncle, Pope Gregory XIV (Niccolo Sfondrato), on 19 December 159 1.30 His death in 1618 marked the end of a 27 year long ecclesiastical career which had seen him rise from abbot to cardinal and bishop.31 During this period he had at various times also been secretary of state, papal legate to Bologna and protector of the Monte Olivetani Order.32

Later commentators remember Sfondrato as a person of artistic taste who, when he became a cardinal, abandoned his ideals and became inter-

23 Correspondence from Cardinal Acquaviva to Sfondrato indicates that Sfondrato was on good terms with the Jesuits from as early as 1588, when he was the abbot at Civate. See BCC, Archivio Sfondrati, cart. XXIII, fol. 122, and below, n. 30.

The convent was founded in 1535 to house the female order of the Barnabites (the Angelics of Saint Paul). For over a century the Sfondrato women dominated the positions of authority at the convent and the Sfondrato males made it a focus for their patronage. On the convent, see P. Baernstein, The Counter- Reformation Convent: the Angelics of San Paolo in Milan, 1535-1635 (Harvard University, Ph.D. thesis, 1993). 25 Odoardo Farnese, who was elected cardinal by Pope Gregory XIV in 1590, was a patron of the Jesuits. He was a close friend of Cardinal Sfondrato and executor of his will. 26 Benedetto Giustiniani was a good friend of Sfondrato. Like Sfondrato, Giustiniani had close ties to Filippo Neri and the Congregation of the Oratory. 27 Barbara (1566-1631) took her religious vows at the convent of San Paolo Converso, Milan, in 1582 and assumed the monastic name of Angelica Agata. She was prioress of the convent for three separate terms (1605-8, 1611-14 and 1617-21). See Sorelle Sfondrati, Vita di Madre Angelica Agata Sfondrati (above, n. 21).

On the importance of the church to Sfondrato, see F. Calvi, Storia e genealogia della famiglia Sfondrati (Bologna, n.d.), table III.

On the subject of universal heirs, see B. Hallman, Italian Cardinals, Reform, and the Church as Property (Berkeley, 1985), 83. 30 Paolo Emilio was the second son of Baron Paolo Sfondrato (1538-87) and Sigismonda d'Este. He grew up in the family's palace in the parish of Sant'Eufemia, Milan. Between 1576 and 1580 he was educated by Filippo Neri and the Congregation of the Oratory at Santa Maria in Vallicella in Rome. Between 1580 and 1584 he attended the Collegio Borromeo in Pavia. On his promotion to the cardinalate he moved back to Rome. See L. Castano, Gregorio XIV, Niccolo Sfondrati (Turin, 1957), 355, and Calvi, Storia e genealogia della famiglia Sfondrati (above, n. 28). 31 Niccolo Sfondrato awarded Paolo Emilio the Monte Olivetani abbey of San Pietro in Civate in 1578. In 1582 he was promoted to the subdeaconate by Cardinal Charles Borromeo. Between 1607 and 1610 be was bishop of Cremona and from 1611 until his death he was bishop of Albano. As a cardinal he retained the titúlate of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere until his death. See Cardella, Memorie storiche de' Cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa V (above, n. 21), 310, and Castano, Gregorio XIV, Niccolo Sfondrati (above, n. 30), 355. 3 Cardella, Memorie storiche de' Cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa V (above, n. 21), 310-13.



310 GALLAGHER

ested in wealth and power.33 Sfondrato's earlier period of patronage indeed reflects these interests. There is an absence of public commissions, with a concentration instead on his desire for sumptuous pieces and prestigious paintings.34 Around 1591 he allegedly 'stole' two paintings, a Portrait of Pope Julius II and The 'Loreto ' Madonna, both by Raphael, from the church of Santa Maria del Popolo, Rome.35 Various letters indicate that he was try- ing, unsuccessfully, to sell the portrait of Julius II to the emperor Rudolf II in 1595 and later to the duke of Urbino as part of a group of paintings.36 The two Raphael paintings are very likely to have been amongst the large group of paintings that Sfondrato exchanged with Cardinal Scipione Borghese for the pension on the Bishopric of Cremona in 1608 in order to settle a debt.37

Guido Bentivoglio, who wrote his book of memoirs during the seventeenth century, observed that, although Sfondrato had abandoned his earlier ideals when he had first become a cardinal, his life later underwent a remark- able shift from greed to piety.38

Despite his earlier avaricious patronage endeavours, Sfondrato remained connected to the Congregation of the Oratory. During the early 1590s he was attending prayer meetings in the rooms of Filippo Neri and associating with fig- ures such as Cardinal Cesare Baronio and Antonio Bosio, who were central to

33 See, for example, R. Foley, in W. McDonald (ed.), The New Catholic Encyclopaedia 13 (Washington, 1967), 153.

Various letters written between 1591 and 1596 refer to Sfondrato's desire to own an ornamental watch on a chain and a painting by Federico Barrocci, whose drawing and use of colour he particularly admired. See G. Gronau, Documenti artistici urbanati, con una tavola fuori testi (Florence, 1936), 191^.

Raphael's Portrait of Pope Julius II is now in the National Gallery, London, and The %oreto' Madonna is now in the Musée Condé, Chantilly. On these paintings and the theft, see C. Gould, The Raphael portrait of Julius II, problems of versions and variants, and a goose that turned into a swan', Apollo 92 (July, 1970), 186-9; C. Gould, in S. Béguin, La Madone de Lorette (Paris, 1979), 6-13; C. Gould, Afterthoughts on Raphael's so-called Loreto Madonna', Burlington Magazine 122 (926) (May, 1980), 337^1.

See L. von Urlich, 'Beitrage zur Geschichte der Kunstbestrebugen und Sammlungen Kaiser Rudolf IF, Zeitschrift für Bildende Kunst 5 (1850), 47-53, 81-5, 136-42; Gronau, Documenti artistici urbanati (above, n. 34), 251-4; Gould, The Raphael portrait of Julius IF (above, n. 35), 187.

'1608 giungno 28 ... II Cardinal Borghese ha comprato novamente dal Cardinale di Santa Cecilia per 4 mila scudi 71 pezzi di quadri di pitture bellisime fatti da pittori princi- pali di questa città, di quali non ha sborsato denari, scomutandosi la pensione, che detto Santa Cecilia deve al Cardinal Borghese sopra il vescovato di Cremona'. See Città del Vaticano, Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana (hereafter, BAV), Urbinate Latini, voi. 1075, fol. 469v.

See G. Bentivoglio, Memorie del Cardinal Bentivoglio con le quali descrive la sua vita, nel corso di essa, ma insieme le più notabili ancora occorse nella città di Roma, in Italia, e altrove (Venice, 1648), 66-8.




the revival of interest in the early Church.39 Through these associations Cardinal Sfondrato developed a keen interest in the cults of the early Christian martyrs.

His association with the Oratorians, in particular Cardinal Baronio, and the approach of the Holy Year appear to have prompted Sfondrato to shift into the sphere of public religious patronage.40 During the late 1590s Sfondrato began the restoration of his titular church, which was followed in 1605 by the restoration of the church of Sant'Agnese fuori le mura.41 Both restoration projects give a clear indication that Sfondrato had by this time developed an interest in the early Christian revival. Moreover, both projects mark an important departure from his earlier style of patronage. They were followed by a series of public religious commissions.

Around 1611, as Protector of the Lombard Confraternity in Rome,42 Cardinal Sfondrato tried to negotiate the positioning of a large Milanese church dedicated to Saint Charles Borromeo between Piazza Monte Giordano and Piazza Sforza Cesarmi, close to the Oratorian Congregational church of Santa Maria in Vallicella.43 After the negotiations with the Oratorians failed

39 G. Incisa della Rocchetta, II primo processo per San Filippo Neri II (Vatican City, 1958), 84. On Filippo Neri and the Oratorians, see L. Ponnelle and L. Bordet, S. Filippo Neri e la società romana del suo tempo (Florence, 1931), and La regola e la fama: San Filippo Neri e l'arte (exhibition catalogue, Palazzo Venezia, Rome) (Milan, 1995). On Baronio and the revival of early Christian art and architecture, see A. Herz, 'Baronio's restoration of SS. Nereo ed Achilleo and S. Cesareo de'Appia', Art Bulletin 70 (4) (1988), 590-620. On Bosio, see A. Valeri, Cenni biografici di Antonio Bosio (Rome, 1900).

Cardinal Baronio had his titular church, Santi Nereo ed Achilleo, restored between 1596 and 1597. In 1597 he began the restoration of San Cesareo on the Via Appia. See Herz, 'Baronio's restoration of SS. Nereo ed Achilleo and S. Cesareo de' Appia' (above, n. 39). 41 For Sfondrato's rediscovery of Saint Agnes's body and his restoration of the church of Sant'Agnese fuori le mura, a project which he took over from Alessandro de' Medici after he became pope in 1605, see M. Boldetti, Osservazioni sopra i cimiteri de' martiri ed antichi cris- tiani di Roma (Rome, 1720), 684-6; D. Bartolini, Gli atti del martirio della nobilissima vergine romana S. Agnese (Rome, 1858), 111-20; A. Frutaz, // complesso monumentale di Sant'Agnese e Santa Costanza (Rome, 1992), 82-3; and A. Zuccari, Arte e committenza nella Roma di Caravaggio (Turin, 1984), 94-7. Various payments for the new ceiling and other work done at the church of Sant'Agnese fuori le mura are recorded in ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4092 (Libro dei Mandati), Oct., 1605-May, 1607. 42 Sfondrato became the Protector of the Lombard Confraternity in Rome in 1604. The Confraternity played a key role in the push to have Charles Borromeo canonized in 1610. After the founding of the church of San Carlo on the Corso, the confraternity was elevated to the status of Archiconfraternity in a papal brief of 1612. On the church and the Archiconfraternity, see G. Drago and L. Salerno, SS. Ambrogio e Carlo sul Corso, e l'arciconfraternità dei Lombardi in Roma (Le chiese di Roma illustrate 96) (Rome, 1967), 13-15. 43 For the attempts to buy the land, see the 'Urbinate Latini, (Avvisi)' quoted by J. Orbaan, Documenti sul barocco in Roma (Rome, 1920), 187, 189, 195, 199, 201, 204, and G. Incisa della Rocchetta, 'La chiesa di San Carlo sulla piazza di Monte Giordano', Strenna dei Romanisti 22 (1961), 43-8. For the drawings showing the intended site and a proposal for the design of a church dedicated to Saint Charles at Monte Giordano, see Rome, Archivio Vallicelliano, C.I 1.8, no. 107 and 108; and Rome, Biblioteca Vallicelliana, 0 572, fol. 48. (They have been reproduced in J. Connors, Borromini and the Roman Oratory, Style and Society (Cambridge (Mass.) and London, 1980), figs 97-9.)



312 GALLAGHER

in 161 1,44 the congregation began clearing the site of the Milanese church of Sant'Ambrogio on the Corso to make way for a new church dedicated to Saints Ambrose and Charles.45

Between 1612 and 1615 Sfondrato, in his role as Protector of the Monte Olivetani Order, paid for a new facade and ceiling at the church of Santa Francesca Romana in the Forum. The painted coffered ceiling, which includes depictions of the Saints Cecilia, Agnes and Frances of Rome, as well as Sfondrato's coat of arms, can be read as a catalogue of his church restorations.46

It could be argued that Sfondrato s vanous projects reflect a public piety that was part of a broader social shift, since at the end of the sixteenth and beginning of the seventeenth centuries a cardinal's 'grandeur' was measured largely by his patronage of religious art and architecture.47 There is little doubt that Sfondrato was influenced by the current social climate and that initially this is what would have prompted him to shift into the sphere of public piety and religious patronage. An Avviso of 23 July 1597 publicly announced that Sfondrato was praying and fasting continually.48 A few years later, when he was involved in the push to have Charles Borromeo canonized and to found a large Milanese church in Rome,49 Cardinal Sfondrato would undoubtedly have seen the benefits in being seen to be a pious Lombard, at a time when there was so much interest in the new Milanese saint.

Cardinal Sfondrato, however, developed a deeper piety which was connected to his rediscovery of Saint Cecilia in 1599. The events surrounding the

44 The Oratorians brought a lawsuit against the Milanese on the grounds that the intended location of the Milanese church was too close to their own and that it would be uncanonical to have two major churches so close together. For the documents regarding this dispute, see ASR, Congregazioni Religiose Maschili, Oratorio dei Filippini, vol. 140, fols 390r-9. (They have been partially reproduced and discussed in Connors, Borromini and the Roman Oratory (above, n. 43), 11-12 and 142.)

'1611, dicembre 7 ... Crescendo giornalmente la devotione e l'elemosine per la fabrica d'una chiesa da erigersi a San Carlo Borromeo, dove è hora quella di Sant'Ambrogio nel Corso, la Nation Milanesi ha cominciato a gettar a terra li muri del giardino di far una chiesa grande di tre navi con una piazza avanti, dedicata a Sant' Ambrogio et a San Carlo, nella quel spesa il Cardinal Santa Cecilia si è già tassato il buona somma.' See BAV, Urbinati Latini, voi. 1079, fol. 825. On the founding of the church on the Corso, see Drago and Salerno, SS. Ambrogio e Carlo al Corso (above, n. 42), 15.

On the church and Saint Frances of Rome, see P. Lugano, Santa Maria Nova (Le chiese di Roma illustrate 1) (Rome, 1923).

G. Fragnito, 'Cardinal's courts in sixteenth century Rome', The Journal of Modern History 65 (1) (1993), 26-56. 46 L. Pastor, History of the Popes 24 (London, 1952), 520.

San Carlo on the Corso is one of three churches dedicated to Saint Charles Borromeo which were founded in Rome within the first ten years after the Milanese saint's canonization. For the canonization and its impact, see N. Rasmussen, 'Liturgy and iconography at the canonization of Carlo Borromeo, 1 November 1610', in J. Headley and J. Tomaro (eds), San Carlo Borromeo, Catholic Reform and Ecclesiastical Politics in the Second Half of the Sixteenth Century (Washington, 1988), 264^76.




rediscovery and his subsequent transformation of the church proved to be pivotal to his life, both publicly and privately. According to Bosio, the rediscovery elicited an extraordinary response. It was impossible to say how many people came to see the sarcophagi containing the relics, which were put on display in the church in between the rediscovery and reinterment. During one Mass the crowd apparently became so large and enthusiastic that the doors of the church had to be locked and a reinforcement of Swiss Guards sent from the papal court to protect the relics.50

By November 1600, Sfondrato had spent 25,000 scudi on the restoration and redecoration of the church, but in the wake of the excitement and interest he was apparently inspired to extend his project.51 The Libro dei Mandati of the church indicates that artisans, mainly gold- and silversmiths, were still being paid for work done for the church as late as October 1605.52 A hand- written family history claims that Sfondrato spent a total of 150,000 scudi on the restoration of the church during his lifetime.53

After the rediscovery of the saint's body, Sfondrato was often referred to as 'II Cardinale Santa Cecilia'.54 A portrait of him, here attributed to Circle of Guido Reni, depicts Sfondrato in a sparse setting as a sombre reserved cardinal holding a letter addressed to // Card}6 S.ta Cecilia (Fig. 2).55 On the memorial to him by Girolamo Rainaldi, now in the portico of the church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, the scene chosen to symbolize his life depicts him revealing the body of Saint Cecilia to Pope Clement VIII (Fig. 3).56

50 Bosio, Historia passionis B. Caeciliae virginis (above, n. 7), 161-70. 'Roma li 25 Novembre 1600 . . . Mercodi matta su le X hore II Papa partendosi à lume di tor-

cie da Palazzo si transferí alla chiesa di S.to Cecilia, ove disse messa passandosene poi di nuovo alle chiese con haver lodato molto. Hl.mo Card.1 Sfondrato, che come Titolare di detta chiesa ha speso nella restauratione di essa, et habilimento oltre 25,000 scudi, havendo anche animo di voler gliene spendere dell' altri per magg.r decoro'. See BAV, Urbinate Latini, (Avvisi), voi. 1068, fol. 787.

The majority of payments from October 1605 onwards are for work done in the church of Sant'Agnese fuori le mura. See ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4092 (Libro dei Mandati, Jan. 1600-Oct. 1600), and above, n. 41.

53 BCC, Archivio Sfondrati, cart. 1, fol. 6. 54 For example, see BAV, Urbinate Latini 1079, fol. 825 (above, n. 45). The work, which is unpublished, has been attributed variously to Guido Reni and

Lavinia Fontana. According to Malvasia, Reni painted a portrait of Cardinal Sfondrato, and Pastor referred to a portrait by Reni of Sfondrato which was owned by the Marchese Alessandro Alfricini at Forli. See C. Malvasia, Vite di pittori bolognesi II (Bologna, 1678; 1841 edition), 47, and Pastor, History of the Popes 22 (above, n. 47), 358, n. 5. In spite of these references, the painting is more likely to be by Circle of Guido Reni.

The monument was constructed between 1623 and 1627 at the request of Cardinal Odoardo Farnese and Signor Pacinello, the executors of Sfondrato's will. It was originally positioned over the entrance to the Ponziani Chapel in the right minor nave. Around 1955 the monument was relocated to the portico after it was decided to reopen the entrance to the Ponziani Chapel. See G. Matthiae, S. Cecilia {Le chiese di Roma illustrate 113) (Rome, 1970), 48, and R. Roca de Amicis, 'Girolamo Rainaldi tra sperimentalismo e aperta del Barocco', in G. Spagnesi (ed.), L'architettura a Roma e in Italia (1580-1621) {Atti del XXIII congresso di storia dell'architettura Roma, 24-26 marzo, 1988 1) (Rome, 1989), 289-90.



314 GALLAGHER

Fig. 2. Circle of Guido Reni (attr.), Portrait of Cardinal Sfondrato, oil on canvas, Forli, private collection. (Photo: Giorgio Liverani, Forli)

After Paolo Emilio Sfondrato died on 14 February 1618, at the Monte Olivetani monastery of Sant'Angelo at Tivoli,57 his body was transported back to Rome on a funeral litter.58 Two days later a simple funeral ceremony, which was attended by 31 cardinals, was held in the church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere.59 That evening, in accordance with his greatest wish, he was buried in the chapel of the confessio near the sarcophagus containing his beloved saint's body.60

Kate Gallagher

57 The monastery of Sant'Angelo at Tivoli was founded in 1360 on the site of the villa of the Roman poet, Catullus. See M. Venditelli, S. Angelo in Plaiule. Storia di un monastero olive- taño a Tivoli (1360-1811) (Rome, 1984).




Fig. 3. Girolamo Rainaldi, Monument to Cardinal Sfondrato (detail), 1620, marble, Rome, Santa Cecilia in Trastevere (portico). (Photo: author)

58 '... Ill.mo Sig.r Cardinale nel Convento di S. Angelo di Tivoli questa mattina a hore 14 incirca II Sig.r Pacinello ser.re del detto Ill.mo Sig.r Cardinale mi ha dato una lettera, e dettomi, che me ne venisse alla volta di Roma con quella celerità possible, et presentasse detta lettera al S.r Mastro di casa di detto Sig.r Cardinale, et dargli nova, che esso S.r Cardinale questa mattina su le 13 hore incirca ha resa l'Anima al suo Creatore, et anco si diceva publicamente da tutti li servitori di detto S.r Card.1, che era morto, per la qual morte piangevano ...' '... che V.S. si può Imaginare, si accommoda il Corpo per condurlo in lettiga, ci mandi sub.° i muli, et la Carrozza per noi, faccino costà quello, che bisogna per ricevere il Corpo, sia questa Commune à tutti perche no ho tempo, et li bacio la mano. Di Tivoli adi 14 di Febraro 1618. S'informi dal M.ro di Cerimonie, come di qua debbia venir' accompagnato di sacerdoti, di Torcie, e simili, et avvisi per gratia distintamente, ci mandi ancora li Cavalli, che sono in casa da cavalcare . . .' For this description by Orazio Duzo, a member of Sfondrato's famiglia', see ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4073, fols 2-3.

'Adi 15 del d.° fa portato il Corpo del d.° Sig.r card.le positivamente nella n'ra Chiesa, dove stette sino al giorno seguente, che era il Venerdi, ne qual giorno gli si facero l'Essequie semplicemente, come lai lasciò nel suo Testam.to, essendovi presenti 31 Card.11...' For this anonymous description, see ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4063 (Atti Diversi), fol. 12.

'Il Venerdi a sera dop 'Essequie, avanti che possassero il Corpo alla Confessione sotto le grotte, dove lasciò di esser sepolco, lo portarono alla grata dove si communicono le moniche, acciò tutte lo potessero vedere et da tutte fu pianto grandissimente et fu sepellito la medissima sera, et fu messo in una cassa di piombo dentro ad un Pilo di marmo nella sepoltura, che si fece fare in vita sua vicino alla sepoltura di S. Cecilia.' For this anonymous description, see ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4063 (Atti Diversi), fol. 12.



316 GALLAGHER

APPENDIX

Archivio di Stato di Roma, Notari Cancellieri del Tribunale dell'Auditor Camerae, Testamenti e donazioni, voi. 25 (Ufficio 3, Palmerius, 1616-1621), fols 131-5v.

Testamento di Card.le Paolo Emilio Sfondrato, 6 Agosto, 1615.

[fol. 131] Jesus Maria, Primieramente raccommando l'anima mia con ogni sommis- sione, humilità, et affetto nelle mani di Giesù Christo mio benigniss.0 Redentore, della sua S.ma, e mai abastanza lodata M're, et Vergine Maria puriss.a vera Avocata de poveri peccatori, delli Gloriosiss.1 Prenicipi degli Apostoli Pietro, e Paolo, della mia gloriosiss.a, et fediliss.a Protettrice Cecilia dolcissima, di S.ta Agnese mia part.ma Avocata, S.ta Maria Madalena, S.ta Tecla, S.to Gioseffo, de SS. Lucio, Urbano, Valeriano, Tiburtio, et Massimo, et di tutti gl'altri santi miei devoti, et protettori, acciò sia fatta degna della divina misericordia, et del loro consortio nella vita eterna.

Appresso voglio, che il mio Corpo sia sepellito nella chiesa di S.ta Cecilia mia, il cui titolo ritengo in vita per dispens.6 ap'lica,61 nella sepoltura fatta da me sotto la confess.6 avanti L'Altare di d.a Santa,62 ordinando di più, che subito morto mi si dicano tremila messe,63 et quante più si potranno da religiosi riformati, nel che incar- ico la consc.a de miei essecutori testamentary, et l'istesso giorno della mia sepoltura voglio si diano ducento scudi di elemosina a quelli poveri, che saranno veram.6 bisog- nosi, rimettendo ciò alla conscienza del Pacinello mio gentil'huomo, che secondo il giuditio suo doverà distribuirli, et non ci essendo lui al P.re64 Priore della Madonna de Scalzi di Trastevere, qualsi degnarà far' fare questa distributione subito, la metà per li poveri di Roma, et l'altra metà per quelli di Trastevere,65 ordinando anco, che gli offitij, [fol. 131v] ò mortuarii si facciano sempliciss.6 con 12 torcie, et non più et senza catafalchi, né pompe, essendo più conveniente ali' humilità Christiana et Ecc.ca.66

Li Cappellani, che io lascio in S. a Cecilia habbino da dir' ogni di Messa et saranno tenuti in cons.ca ad applicar' sempre il sacrificio per me in perpetuo, et quando sarà offitio di feria, saranno tenuti anco à dir' la messa de morti.

61 apostolica. Cardinal Sfondrato's body was rediscovered in front of the altar dedicated to Saint

Cecilia during the late nineteenth-century excavations of the confessio. See F. Caraffa and A. Massone, Santa Cecilia martire romana (Vatican City, 1983), 167.

A request for 3,000 votive Masses is a lot but not unique. It is definitely a sign of Sfondrato's piety. On votive Masses, see J. Gardner, The Tomb and the Tiara. Curial Tomb Sculpture in the Later Middle Ages (Oxford, 1992), 12 and n. 67. 04 Padre.

In this respect Sfondrato is, in part, imitating Saint Cecilia who, according to her legend, gave away her belongings to the poor. For the legend of Saint Cecilia, see B. Mombrizio, Sanctuarium 1 (Milan, c. 1480), 187-92, and also Bosio, Historia passionis B. Caeciliae virginis (above, n. 7), 1-26. Bosio's version of the legend comes directly from Mombrizio. At his death Cardinal Sfondrato owned a copy of Mombrizio's Sanctuarium. See ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4073, fol. 115. Cardinal Sfondrato also owned several copies of the 'Vita di Santa Cecilia', which in all likelihood were copies of Bosio's book. See ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4073, fols 115, 143 and 152v.

Not wishing to draw attention to oneself, by requesting that candles are not placed on the catafalque during the funeral, was a standard sign of piety.




Et perche hebbi dalla S.ta mem. di Papa Gregorio XIIII mio Zio una ampliss.a facoltà di testare nell'Anno 1591 credo sotto il di 15 di Agosto,67 però in virtù di essa, et in ogni altro meglior modo, che già mai possa, instituisco herede universale la chiesa della mia S.ta Cecilia di Trastevere, ove riposa il suo S.mo Corpo tanto in tutti li miei beni immobili, et mobili, ragiorni, et attioni, presenti, e future, quanto del- l'anello mio Cardinalitio,68 e raggioni del Cappello, et anco di una parte della Cappella mia, delle quali tutti ho facoltà di porter testare, cioè quanto alla Capella del lettorino d'argento, delle tre baciletti d'argento che adopero per me compresovi, li doi boccalini da Vino, et da acqua, due messali d'Anversa, scatola di argento da hostie, campanello d'argento, corporali, et palle, ma quelli solo, che sono lavorati con oro, tutto il resto della Capella, cioè Croce, (eccettuata però quella de Diamanti di Boemia, quale mi trovo già donata alla mia S.ta Cecilia) candelieri d'argento, calici d'argento et anco col piede d'altra materia, Camisi, pianete piviali, mitre, biancaria, palij, et altri messali, che saranno cosi nella Capella come fuori, bottone da piviale, et in somma quanto vi sarà d'altro [fol. 132] in detta espella tutto lascio alla mia chiesa di San Pancratio d' Albano, et alla sua Sacristía, eccetuate però le reliquie, cosi poste nelle Croci pettorali, come in anelli, o in qualsivoglia altra maniera, perche tutte voglio siano del Monasterio della mia chiesa di S.ta Cecilia, come a basso, et la croce de diamanti di Boemia è ligata in oro con una torchiila al piede, et una perla, oltre l'altre in cima grossa, per la quale ho pagato 500 s.dl con auttorità della S.ta mem.a di Papa Clemente al Monast.0 di S. Paolo di Milano, ove mi trovavo haverla donata alla n'ra70 Cappella posta in quella chiesa,71 et altri 500 ducatoni resto à dargli, quali pagare presto, che di tanto restassimo d'accordo, come dico con autorità di N. S.re72 et alla stessa chiesa mia lascio tutti i frutti de quali posso testare, cosi essatti, come non essatti, di Abbadie, pensioni, et in somma di quanto ho, haverò, et posso pretendere, et testare conforme alla facoltà mia, et in qualsivoglia altro miglio' modo, con dichiarai.6 espressa, che d.a heredità mia ceda non à benefitio del Monast.0, ma solo à commodo, utilità, et honore della mia santa et sua chiesa, nel modo, che dirò a basso.

67 Obtaining the pope's permission for an individual cardinal to make a will was not com-

pulsory. It was, however, prudent to obtain this permission, in the event that the will was challenged after the cardinal's death. See Hallman, Italian Cardinals (above, n. 29), 81.

This is unusual as the cardinalate ring usually reverts to the pope. See Hallman, Italian Cardinals (above, n. 29), 82.

The cathedral of San Pancrazio, Albano. Sfondrato was made bishop of Albano in 1611 and retained that title until his death. See Caraffa and Massone, Santa Cecilia martire romana (above, n. 62), 98.

nostra. 71 In 1548 Francesco Sfondrato (Sfondrato's great uncle) left money so that a Sfondrato family chapel dedicated to the Blesed Virgin could be decorated in the external church of San Paolo Converso, Milan. See Archivio di Stato, Milano (hereafter, ASM), Fondo di Religiose, Milano, Monasteri S. Paolo Agostiniiane dette Angeliche, b. 2208, cart. VII, fol. 1. The initial decoration of the chapel has not been determined, although today it contains an altarpiece depicting The Rest on the Flight into Egypt signed by Giulio Campi and dated 1567. The fresco scenes in the vault of the chapel, which depict three episodes from the life of the Virgin, have been attributed to Antonio Campl. On the decoration of the chapel, see G. Bora, in M. Gregori (ed.), / Campi, cultura artistica cremonese del cinquecento (Milan, 1985), 143. In 1598 Sfondrato provided money so that two Masses could be said daily in this chapel. He further stipulated that candles be kept lit and the chapel kept clean. See ASM, Fondo di Religiose, Milano, Monasteri S. Paolo Agostiniane dette Angeliche, b. 2208, cart. VII, fol. 2.

Nostro Signore here refers to the pope.



318 GALLAGHER

Dichiarando anco, che in questa mia heredità non si comprendono i beni patri- moniali, come non si ponno comprendere per haverne già fatta donatione al Duca mio 1111V lliUVj fr.llo,73 et V/b suoi OUV1 descendenti, UV0VVUUV11U, come VU111V in 111 VÜOU. essa.74 1111V lliUVj V/b OUV1 UV0VVUUV11U, VU111V 111 VÜOU. 1111V lliUVj V/b OUV1 UV0VVUUV11U, VU111V 111 VÜOU.

Di più ordino, che primieram.6 si paghino tutti li miei debiti de quali sarà come nota di mia mano presso à questo testam.to mio per maggior' chiarezza,75 et quelli, che mi trovare al punto della mia morte.

[fol. 132v] Di più voglio, che della vendita, che si farà di tutta la mia robba, siano grani, vini d'Abb.e entrate, frutti mobili di Casa, et di qualsivoglia altra cosa, li denari si mettino in censi,76 et non in altro, de Religioni à cinque per cento, et quando occorrerà siano estinti, si tornino à mettere in altri censi simili, non volendo luoghi de Monti,77 né altro volendo cavar' meno, et assicurar' la perpetuità dell'en- trata, nel che aggravo la consc.a di quelli, à chi lascio questa administr.ne, essecutione del mio testam.t0, et li denari mentre s'impiegaranno, stiano sempre sul monti della pietà, ne possino star' altrove.

Li frutti, che si cavaranno da questa mia heredità si distribuiscano nella forma seguente.

P.a di tutto voglio, et premo che si mantengano le novanta lampade, che sono nella chiesa di S.ta Cecilia mia hoggi, quali ardino di, et notte procurando di com- prar' sempre ogli eccellentiss.1, et questa sia la prima, et pr'ale78 intentione, et volunta mia.

Se vi avanzaranno danari secondariam.6 voglio si mantenga un Custode laico, quale habbia cura di tener' quotidianam.6 netti li marmi, et bronzi della sepoltura della Santa, accendere le lampade, et tenerle polite, et scopar' la chiesa, quale perciò sia tenuto ad habitar' vicino alla chiesa, et dar' sigurtà almeno di 300 s.dl et sé gli daranno ottanta scudi di m.ta per le sue fatiche, ma di gratia si procuri di eligere sempre persona fidata, et devota et non si tenga conto di raccomman.m se non quanto sia servitio della Santa.

In terzo luogo, se vi saranno danari si mantenghino quattro Cappellani che [fol. 133] habbino à celebrare, et se alcuna volta alcuno non potesse faccia celebrare per altri quotidianam.6 la messa applicandola come sopra all'anima mia in perpetuo, tutti quattro un di per uno dovernano fare la guardia alla chiesa, et uno di questi dovrà esser' custode del Corpo della Santa, come hora si fa, dando sicurtà di 500 scudi per li candeglieri d'argento, et altre robbe che sono nella confess.6, et l'uffìtio suo sarà il tener' pulitiss.0 quel sacro luogo, et tenere la chiave della confess.6 con obligo di quo- tidiana residenza, che à quest' effetto se gli assegnano provis.6 cento scudi l'anno, all'atri tre, ottanta, ma con obligo, che uno di questi faccia la sacristía.

73 Paolo Emilio's older brother Èrcole, duke of Montemarciano. Calvi, Storia e genealogia della famiglia Sfondrati (above, n. 28).

Here the will is referring to a donation' of 1580, in which Paolo Emilio, who had decided to pursue a religious career, gave up the right to any of his father's inheritance. See BCC Archivio SfondratL cart. XXXIII. 75 For this list, see ASR, Notari Cancellieri del Tribunale dell' Auditor Camerae, Testamenti e donazioni, vol. 25 (Ufficio 3, Palmerius, 1616-1621), fols 131-5v.

Interest-bearing bonds on mortgaged property. See B. Hallman, Italian Cardinals (above, n. 29), 91. 7 A reference to 'monti non vacabili' which were interest-bearing shares in the papal debt transferable to heirs. See Hallman, Italian Cardinals (above, n. 29), 91. Sfondrato stresses he does not want his estate invested in these.

principale.




In quarto luogo se vi avanzaranno danari, voglio si tenghino due chierici, oltre quello delle Monache, alii quali si diano cinquanta scudi per uno, che habbino à servir' le messe, et la chiesa, et un di per uno far' la guardia in chiesa, et perciò voglio, che cosi essi, come li Capellani siano obligad à star' vicino alla chiesa, et questi Preti, chierici, et laico prohibisco espressamente, che non possino stare con Cardinali, Vescovi, Prelati, ne con altri ma stiano da se, et vicino alla chiesa senza servire ad alcun' altro, che alla Santa; spero di levar' presto la cura à questa chiesa, ma quando non mi riuscisse, alle Monache toccarà di provedere di Curato, come facevano prima.

[fol. 133v] Se vi avanzassero in quinto luogo denari, che il Sig.re mi disse tanta vita, è commodità, che potesse avanzare per questa mia gloriosiss.a Santa, il resto voglio prima s'impieghi in tener' almeno quattro altri Capellani con l'elemosina d'un giulio al giorno per la messa, senza obligarli ad altro; et il sopravanzo in pagare una Casa per li primi quattro Capellani, et Custode laico, per riparar le lampade di argento, si bisognasse lampadarij, et altro.

Ouesti Capellani tutti, Chierici, et Custode laico, lascio che siano eletti della M. Abb. , et Capitulo di tutti le Monache con suffragij, che passino la metà, et l'Abb.sa sola però li possa licentiare pregando tutte le Monache instantiss.e à non voler in ciò ammettere favori humani, ma pigliata diligentiss.a informatione della vita, et costumi, mirar' solo per il servitio della Santa non accettando in ciò dispensa alcuna, che altro volesse ottenere da Pontifici pro tempore.

Le Reliquie, come delle teste delli tre Santi in poi, sono state cercate da me, et havute con gran faticha, et sollecitud.6, cosi prohibisco, che non si possino toccare, et guardisi ciascuno di non incorrere nella indignati di questa gloriosa santa, se bene dal canto mio spero d'assicurarle benne etiam con Censure, et autorità Pontificia tutti le dono al Monasterio, et alle Monache insieme, con che sotto pena di scomm.ca8° latae sententiae non possino levarne [fol. 134] un tantino, le quali prego Instantissimamente à non volere con sentir' mai, che se né levi da altri etiam Cardinali sotto qual sivoglia pretesto una minima particella, et così doverà L'Abbad.a giurare di fare nelP ingresso del suo offìtio à quest' effetto lascio una chiave dell'armario, che fò fare quest' anno nella Cappella delle Sante Reliquie alla Abbad.a. La 2.a alla Decana, la terza alla Mastra delle Novitie, che non doveranno far' aprir' mai la Capella, se non per netterla, e questo di notte, et serrata la chiesa, et quando occorrerà mostrar le reliquie, aprino la notte per il giorno, tendendo ser- rato l'uscio della cappella, ne mai possino levar sotto pena di scomm.ca latae sententiae i vasi degli armarij per mostrarli alle ferrate, ò altrove, ma solo per nettarli, et accommodarli.

81Alla S.ma imagine della Madonna di Loreto, lascio che si faccia un Cuore di oro di peso di cento scudi, et se gli appenda al collo in memoria dell' amore, che ho desiderato portarli, Di più gli lascio l'anello, che porto in dito, dove è intagliata la sua imagine.

79 The Madre Abbadessa's appointment of the caretakers is recorded in the 'Libro dei Mandati5 of the church. See ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4092 (Libro dei Mandati), 1618-32. 80 scommunica.

In this section of the will, as a way oí making his memory live on, Si onorato leaves a number of items such as paintings and books to various beneficiaries. The identification of these paintings will form part of a separate paper about Sfondrato's private collection.



320 GALLAGHER

Lascio all' Angelica Agata mia sorella, l'anello che porto in dito delle reliquie di S.ta Cecilia.82

Lascio a Nostro Signore il quadro piccolo di Ratìaele tatto a acquarella, o con la penna.83 La S.^ Cecilia moribonda del Vanni al Duca mio fr.llo. Il Quadro di S.ta Agnese al Marchese mio fr.llo, II quadro grande di S. Pietro, che piange i suoi pec- cati al S.r Card.1 Farnese. Al S.r Card.1 Giustiniano L'ecce homo [fol. 134v] del Sodomi in tavola con una fessura. Alla Minerva il ritratto naturale di S. Tomaso. Al Giesù il ritratto di S.ta Cecilia, et de miei santi, ove sono ancora io inginocchio.86 A P'ri87 Scalzi Carmelitani il mio tondo della Madonna.88 A Monte uliveto maggiore il quadro grande della Madonna ove sono inginocchio, S.ta Cecilia, et S.ta Agnese. Alle mie Monache di S.ta Cecilia, II quadro della Madalena, tutte le corone mie, et 25 pezzi de libri spiritu- ali volgari89 s'accontentino di questo, poiché tutto il resto si lascia alla Santa.

82 Sfondrato had previously given another of Saint Cecilia's relics, the coffin in which her body had been placed while it was on display in the church in 1599, to the convent of San Paolo Converso. See Bosio, Historia passionis B. Caeciliae virginis (above, n. 7), 159. During her first term as prioress, Agata had commissioned a chapel in the internal (nuns') church attached to the convent which was dedicated to the Holy Virgins, where the coffin, along with that of Saint Agnes, also donated by Sfondrato, was displayed as a relic. See B. de Klerk, 'La chiesa di San Paolo Converso a Milano nel seicento. Appunti sulla committenza e sulla fun- zione della decorazione', Arte Lombarda 1-2 (1994), 87-94. The chapel must have been completed by 1607 before Sfondrato gained the titles of bishop of Cremona or bishop of Albano, as, according to an anonymous document which records the various inscriptions in the church and convent, there was an inscription near the two coffins which read, Taulus Sfondratus Tit. S. Ceciliae Has Areas Roma Agathae Sorori, Mediolani missit'. See Archivio Storico di San Barnaba, Milano, A cart. 12, fase. n. 6.

The sale and division of Sfondrato's belongings after his death records a 'Quadretto di Raffaello in penna al Papa per mano del Abbate Niccolo Visconti'. See ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4190, fol. 74.

Sfondrato's younger brother, Francesco, Marchese di Montana. Calvi, Storia di genealogia della famiglia Sfondrati (above, n. 28), table II.

Sfondrato owned several writings by Aquinas. See ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4073, fols 122v-5b. By leaving the church a painting of the saint, Sfondrato is paying homage to the 'Collegio di San Tommaso d'Acquino' which was founded at Santa Maria sopra Minerva in 1577. On the church and the college, see N. lotti, Santa Maria sopra Minerva (Rome, 1990), esp. p. 42.

In the sacristy of the Gesù, Rome, there are today two paintings of this subject, one attributed to Giovanni Baglione and the other to Francesco Vanni. For the paintings, see S. Pepper, taglione, Vanni and Cardinal Sfondrato', Paragone 211 (1967), 69-74. Sfondrato's inventory at his death lists only one painting of this subject: 'Un quadro per lungo con Santa Cecilia, et cinque altri santi con il Cardinale inginocchione con cornice tinte di nero'. See ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4073, fol. 25. From the inventory and will, however, it is not clear which painting Sfondrato owned and subsequently left to the Gesù. Furthermore, the painting cannot be identified on the basis of its frame because currently both paintings in the sacristy have similar gilded frames. 87 Padri.

From 1592 onwards there were several miracles that were connected with an image of the Madonna that was in the church of Santa Maria della Scala, Trastevere. Sfondrato may have been paying homage to this miraculous image by leaving the church a painting of the Madonna. See Fusciardi, Cenni storici sui conventi dei PP. Carmelitani Scalzi (above, n. 20), 8-9.

Sfondrato owned an extensive collection of both religious and non-religious books which was housed in the four front rooms of the 'piano nobile' of the Palazzo Capodiferro (now Spada). See ASR, Congr. Relig. Femm., Benedettine a Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, b. 4073, fols 75-161.




Awertisco di più, che nel pagare de debiti, caso che io ne lasci alla morte mia, et non habbi tempo di pagarli, è bene aprir' gl'occhi, et prima di tutto vedere le rece- vute che sono al Computista à libri del banco, del Mastro di Casa, et di quello, che tiene i denari della Cassa di Casa.

Et perche desidero di lasciar' ogni cosa chiara, e distinta, però con questo mio testam.t0 va accompagnata una nota delle mie entrate, che mi trovo hora con alcune avvertenze, perche sappiamo subito, et senza difficoltà ciò che ponno havere da riscuotere delle mie entrate, con una lista anco de miei debiti grossi, che mi trovo per il di di hoggi.

La cura d'impiegare, et essigere tutto il Capitale la lascio alii miei essecutori tes- tamentarij, quali saranno il S. Card.1 Farnese mio, che così ne lo supplico,90 et sotto di lui l'Auditor mio, et il Pacinelli, della fede de quali confido infinitam.6 con amplis- sima facoltà di poter' in caso di dubio fare ogni [fol. 135] dichiaratione, ò anco di pura controversia per la prima volta, et poi occurrendo il caso di nuovo impiego, dovrà farlo l'Abbad.sa del Monasterio di detta mia Santa, quale non possa disporre de frutti in modo alcuno, se non conforme la volunta mia detta di sopra, et a lei toc- carà di far' li mandati, et sottoscriverli. Ma l'essattione de frutti voglio tocchi sempre al Cassiero del Monte della Pietà, che sarà pro tempore nella cassa del quale hanno à star' sempre, al quale oltre il pargarle ogni spesa, che in ciò facesse, se le daranno per recognitione ogn' anno scudi vinticinque. Ma perche habbia poco che fare di gratia si faccino i Censi con le Religioni di grossa somma. Et se nelle sopradette cose si mancasse, ò si facesse contro la volunta mia, supplicò il Sig.r Card.le titolare pro tempore à farle esseguire ad honor' della santa con ogni sollecitudine.

Alla famiglia lascio il vestito di cotiucci, et le spese per li 40 giorni soliti, del resto non voglio far' legati particolari hora per non sapere, che servitori mi trovarò al tempo della mia morte, riserbandomi questo per allora:9

Lascio di più ad honore, et gloria di S.ta Agnese mia, et del suo S.mo Corpo, eh si diano ogn' anno ducento cinquanta boccali d'oglio, non danari, ma oglio effetti- vam.te alla chiesa di detta Santa, perche si mantenghino le diece lampade, che hoggi vi ardono di, et notte, et di gratia procuri L'Abbad.sa di S.ta Cecilia, che sia esseguita pontualissimamente questa mia volunta, [fol. 135v] et usi ogni rimedio di ragione, perche questa Santa gloriosa sia servita nel modo, che io ordino.

Questo testamento, qual voglio, che vaglia in ogni miglior' modo, che già mai possa, è stato fatto, et sotto scritto da me Paolo Card.Ie di S.ta Cecilia, et sigillato col mio piccolo sigillo, qui in Roma questo di 6 d'Agosto festa della gloriosissima trans- figuratione di N. S.re dell'anno mille seicento quindeci, rivocando, cassando, et annul- lando qual si voglia altro test.to fatto sino à quest'hora, et uno particolarmente fatto, sé mal non me ricordo l'anno 1601 rogato, et consignato al Mainardo notario di quel tempo. P. Ep.us Albanen' Cardinalis S.tae Ceciliae propria manu subscripsi loco.

90 The danger of having one's will challenged post mortem made it wise to name a power- ful person at the papal court, such as Cardinal Odoardo Farnese, as an executor. See Hallman, Italian Cardinals (above, n. 29), 88.

It was standard practice for the members of the cardinal's household to be issued mourn- ing clothes and the salaries owed to them. Further to this, they were allowed to stay for 40 days in the cardinal's home at his expense. See C. Richardson, The lost will and testament of Cardinal Francesco Todeschini Piccolomini (1439-1503)', Papers of the British School at Rome 66 (1998), 203, nn. 46 and 47; and M. Dykmans si (ed.), L'oeuvre de Patrizi Piccolomini ou te ceremonial de la première renaissance (Studi e testi 293) (Vatican City, 1980), 221-2. My thanks to Carol Richardson for allowing me to read her article before its publication.



An Expression of Piety: The Last Will of Cardinal Paolo Emilio Sfondrato (1561-1618)

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