Ercole dei Fedeli (born c. 1465 as Salomone da Sesso, died c. 1504–21) was an Italian

goldsmith A goldsmith is a Metalworking, metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Modern goldsmiths mainly specialize in jewelry-making but historically, they have also made cutlery, silverware, platter (dishware), plat ...

and master sword engraver. His name has also been recorded as Ercole da Ferrara, da Sesso, dei Fidelis, de Fedeli or de Fedelis.

Life

Born and raised in the Jewish tradition, he worked as a goldsmith in

Ferrara Ferrara (; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Emilia-Romagna, Northern Italy, capital of the province of Ferrara. it had 132,009 inhabitants. It is situated northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main ...

, including for

Eleanor of Naples, Duchess of Ferrara Eleanor of Naples (Leonora or Eleonora of Aragon; 22 June 1450 – 11 October 1493) was Duchess of Ferrara by marriage to Ercole I d'Este. She was the first duchess of Ferrara, and mother of many famous Renaissance figures. She was a well known p ...

. After his forced conversion to Christianity between March and November 1491, he assumed the name "Ercole dei Fedeli" ("Hercules of the Faithful"), married a woman named Eleanor and fathered several children. In 1504 he is last recorded as working for

Isabella d'Este Isabella d'Este (19 May 1474 – 13 February 1539) was the Marchioness of Mantua and one of the leading women of the Italian Renaissance as a major cultural and political figure. She was a patron of the arts as well as a leader of fashion ...

, the wife of

Francesco II Gonzaga Francesco II Gonzaga (10 August 1466 – ) was the ruler of the Italian city of Mantua from 1484 until his death. Biography Francesco was born in Mantua, the son of Marquis Federico I Gonzaga. Francesco had a career as a condottiero acting as V ...

and duchess of

Mantua Mantua ( ; ; Lombard language, Lombard and ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Italian region of Lombardy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, eponymous province. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the "Italian Capital of Culture". In 2 ...

. A petition from 1521 by his wife and children, which does not name him, makes it appear likely that he had died by then.

Work

Ercole is known principally for his work as a sword engraver, as few of his other works have remained. His engravings are characterized by framing architectural arches, a great sense of movement in figurative scenes, and a very light, technically flawless stroke. Charles Émile Yriarte (1891) and some later scholars attributed almost all Italian

cinquedea The cinquedea (, ) or cinqueda is a civilian short sword (or long dagger). It was developed in northern Italy and enjoyed a period of popularity during the Italian renaissance of the 15th and early 16th centuries. The name ''cinquedea'' means "f ...

s of his period to Ercole, an attribution that now appears dubious. The works now attributed to him with some certainty are: *the cinquedea of

Cesare Borgia Cesare Borgia (13 September 1475 – 12 March 1507) was a Cardinal (Catholic Church)#Cardinal_deacons, cardinal deacon and later an Italians, Italian ''condottieri, condottiero''. He was the illegitimate son of Pope Alexander VI of the Aragonese ...

(now at the Casa Caetani in Rome) and its scabbard (

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (abbreviated V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.8 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen ...

in London, no. M 101.1869) *a cinquedea in

Brescia Brescia (, ; ; or ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the region of Lombardy, in Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Lake Garda, Garda and Lake Iseo, Iseo. With a population of 199,949, it is the se ...

( Museo Marzoli, no. 727) *a cinquedea in Florence (

Stibbert Museum The Stibbert Museum () is located on via Frederick Stibbert on the hill of Montughi in Florence, Italy. The museum contains over 36,000 Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, including a vast Collection (museum), collection of armour from Eastern an ...

, no. 3593) *a cinquedea in London (

Royal Armouries The Royal Armouries is the United Kingdom's national collection of arms and armour. Once an important part of England's military organization, it became the United Kingdom's oldest museum, and one of the oldest museums in the world. It is als ...

, no. IX.146) *a sword in Paris ( Musée national du Moyen Âge, no. CL 11811) *three swords in Vienna (

Kunsthistorisches Museum The Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien ( "Vienna Museum of art history, Art History", often referred to as the "Museum of Fine Arts, Vienna") is an art museum in Vienna, Austria. Housed in its festive palatial building on the Vienna Ring Road, i ...

, nos. A453–A455) *a

rapier A rapier () is a type of sword originally used in Spain (known as ' -) and Italy (known as '' spada da lato a striscia''). The name designates a sword with a straight, slender and sharply pointed two-edged long blade wielded in one hand. It wa ...

in St. Petersburg (

Hermitage Museum The State Hermitage Museum ( rus, Государственный Эрмитаж, r=Gosudarstvennyj Ermitaž, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj ɪrmʲɪˈtaʂ, links=no) is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and holds the large ...

, no. B410)

Works on Ercole dei Fedeli

References

;Sources * ;Notes {{DEFAULTSORT:Fedeli Italian goldsmiths Italian engravers 15th-century Italian Jews 15th-century Italian artists 1460s births 16th-century deaths