373 - Bertoldo di GIOVANNI (c. 1435–1491)

Bertoldo di GIOVANNI (c. 1435–1491) Rare single-sided bronze medal with a brown patina, depicting a left-facing bust of Mehmed II Wearing a turban and an Ottoman crescent-shaped medallion, with the inscription around the rim reading “Maumbet Asie ac Trapesunzis Magneque Gretie Imperat” (Mehmed, Emperor of Asia, Trebizond, and Greater Greece). Antique cast. Diameter: 9.5 cm. History The seventh sultan of the Ottoman Empire, he earned the nickname “the Conqueror” by capturing Constantinople in 1453 and making it the capital of his empire. A lover of classical literature and art, he invited Western scholars and artists—including Florentines and Venetians—to his court. The first medal bearing his likeness was created by Gentile Bellini: the design was adapted and refined by Bertoldo di Giovanni around 1480 to fulfill a commission from Lorenzo de’ Medici, known as “the Magnificent,” as a token of his gratitude to the man who had assisted in the extradition of one of his brother’s assassins.