Luxury and the Ethics of Greed in Early Modern Italy

Abstract

With these words, Galeazzo Maria Sforza, made a mock confession of his sins to the Mantuan ambassador to Milan, Zaccaria Saggi, in 1473, and, as Timothy McCall notes, when Galeazzo admitted to luxuria, he was observing that he was guilty of lust, not indulging in luxury. This example sits at the heart of Catherine Kovesi’s fascinating book which is as much about the language of luxury as it is about the goods that early modern Italians across the social spectrum Maria Hayward is professor of Early Modern History at the University of Southampton. Her research interests include late medieval and early modern textiles and clothing, gift giving, and Tudor and Stuart court culture. Her most recent book is Stuart Style: Monarchy, Dress and the Scottish Male Elite (Yale University Press, 2020). m.hayward@soton.ac.uk