Their name is a byword for immense wealth and power, but before their renown as art patrons and noblemen, the Medici built their fortune on banking – specifically, on lending money at interest. Banking in the fifteenth century, even at the height of the Renaissance, meant running afoul of the Catholic Church’s prohibition against usury. It required more than merely financial skills to make a profit, and the legendary Medici – most famously Cosimo and Lorenzo (“the Magnificent”) – were masterly in wielding the political, diplomatic, military, and even metaphysical tools that were needed to maintain their family’s position.
Tim Parks uncovers the intrigues, dodges, and moral qualities that gave the Medici their edge. Evoking the richness of the Florentine Renaissance and the Medici’s glittering circle, replete with artists, popes, and kings, Medici Money is a look into the origins of modern banking and its troubled relationship with art and religion. Buona lettura!