RUCELI, FAMILY. - A Florentine family. The earliest known ancestor is an ALAMANNO, who in the 13th century, having extracted a dye from a plant called oricella to color wool, earned the nickname "oricellario."
The Rucellai, enriched through commerce, distinguished themselves for their cultural activity and patronage. GIOVANNI di Paolo (1403–81) had the family palace and the façade of S. Maria Novella built according to a design by Leon Battista Alberti. BERNARDO di Giovanni (1448–1514) married Nannina, niece of Cosimo the Elder; favored by Lorenzo de’ Medici, he was opposed by Piero; later, in hatred of Soderini, he drew closer to the Medici. He was the author of historical works, and the "Orti Oricellari" became the seat of the Platonic Academy (for his son GIOVANNI see below). Other ecclesiastics were: PANDOLFO di Giovanni (1436–1497), a Dominican at S. Marco under the name of fra Santi, venerated in his Order as venerable; SIMONE di Vanni (1460–1514), a Florentine canon, rector of the Studio of Pisa, apostolic collector of Tuscany under Alexander VI, and chamberlain of Julius II; FRANCESCO di Filippo (1466–1503), bishop of Pesaro in 1499, vice-legate in Bologna in 1502; ANNIBALE di Luigi (d. 28 Jan. 1601 in Rome), who lived in France where he became bishop of Carcassonne (1 Apr. 1569); upon his return to Italy, Clement VIII appointed him legate of Bologna and Ancona and master of the household; LUIGI di Orazio (d. 1627), who followed Maria de’ Medici to France and, after giving her substantial aid, fell into disfavor with Richelieu, turned to military life, and died in battle. In the 18th century, GIULIO di Paolo Benedetto (1702–78) is noteworthy; he was a professor at the University of Pisa, minister of finance under Peter Leopold, and the inspirer of the latter’s jurisdictionalist policies.
GIOVANNI, poet, b. in Florence on 20 Oct. 1475, d. in Rome on 3 Apr. 1525.
A cousin of Leo X, despite his political duties he composed two tragedies: *Rosmunda* and *Oreste*. After becoming a churchman, he was appointed by Clement VII castellan of Castel S. Angelo, in whose service he died on the eve of receiving the cardinal’s hat. His best-known work is the elegant didactic poem *Le Api*, dedicated to Trissino and largely based on Book IV of Virgil’s *Georgics*.
It contains a reference (vv. 358–79) to the election to the papacy of Clement VII.
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