Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Jonathon Keats is a writer and artist who critiques museum exhibits. When Cosimo I de’ Medici became the second duke of Florence, ...

The image of the virile duke dressed in immaculate armor with brilliant crimson trimmings, known as Cosimo I de’ Medici in armour (c. 1545), was replicated widely and has at least 25 versions, ...

The concept of “art for art’s sake” may be a fine vision, but the reality of art is often far less idealistic. From Napoleon’s patronage of Jacques-Louis David to John F. Kennedy’s choice of Robert ...

Cosimo de’ Medici was the first of the Medici dynasty during the Italian Renaissance. Though he only held public office for a short while, thanks to his immense wealth and effective leadership style, ...

While Lorenzo the Magnificent remains the most well-known member of the Medici family thanks to popular biographies and the Netflix series, Duke Cosimo I was the most successful Medici of them all.

The Albizzi were one of the oldest families in Florence and led the republican government for two generations. By 1427, they were the most powerful family in the city, and far richer than the Medici.