Badge

Place of origin: Italy (made)

Date: 1328-42 (made)

Artist/Maker: Unknown

Materials and Techniques: Copper, gilded; enamel

Museum number: 8991-1863

Gallery location: Medieval & Renaissance, Room 9, The Dorothy and Michael
Hintze Gallery, case 1

Public access description

Heraldric imagery was used as much by wealthy clergy as by other powerful staesmen, especially on ecclesiastical seals and tombs.
Clergymen often combined their personal arms with symbols of their office. This particular heraldic piece indicates the bearer's lineage and
ecclesiastical status. The personal arms of Bishop Angelo Acciaioli are shown with emblems of his role as bishop, the mitre and the cross. As
a member of a wealthy and powerful Florentine family, Bishop Acciaioli would have wanted to emphasise his family connnections as well as
his position in the church.It is not certain how the badge was used; it might have been attached to a retainer's belt or to a horse harness.
Descriptive line
Badge, in the form of a ribbon and pendant cross, of copper-gilt and champlevé enamel,1382-42
Physical description
Badge, of copper-gilt and champlevé enamel. The lower part, in the shape of a cross, is enamelled in the centre with the arms of Bishop
Acciaioli, who was successively Bishop of Aquila from 1328-42, of Florence from 1342-55, and of Monte Cassino from 1355-7. The upper
section, bow-shaped, depicts a bishop's mitre.
Dimensions
Height: 11.8 cm, Width: 8.1 cm, Depth: 1.1 cm, Weight: 0.08 kg
Museum number
8991-1863
Object history note
Purchased for £4 16 shillings in 1863

This object depicts the arms of Angelo Acciaioli (d.1357). The Acciaioli family was a very wealthy and powerful Florentine family. Angelo
Acciaioli was Bishop of Aquila from 1328 to 1342 and Bishop of Florence from 1342 to 1355. In Florence he led a conspiracy against the tyrant
Duca d'Atene. Acciaioli had close political connections with Naples and was appointed chancellor there in 1348. In 1355 he became Bishop of
Monte Cassino.

Historical significance: Although heraldry was primarily used in a secular context, it was soon adopted by the clergy and used on ecclesiastical
seals, tombs and ornament. Clergymen often combined their personal arms with symbols of their office. This particular heraldic piece
promotes the bearer's lineage and ecclesiastical status. The personal arms of Bishop Angelo Acciaioli are shown with symbols of his episcopal
position, the mitre and the cross. As a member of a wealthy and powerful Florentine family, Bishop Acciaioli would have wanted to promote his
family connnections as well as his position in the church.
Historical context note
This ornament was probably used as a belt tag or badge. The studs at the back of the object suggest that it was originally fitted to leather or
wood.
URL
http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O127124/badge-unknown/