Maria Salviati

Maria Salviati, born on July seventeenth, fourteen ninety-nine, was a prominent Florentine noblewoman. She was the daughter of Lucrezia di Lorenzo de' Medici and Jacopo Salviati, a lineage that placed her at the heart of the Italian aristocracy.

In her early years, Maria married Giovanni delle Bande Nere, a union that would lead to the birth of their son, Cosimo I de' Medici, who would later become a significant figure in the history of Florence. Tragically, her husband passed away on November thirtieth, fifteen twenty-six, leaving her a widow at the tender age of twenty-seven.

Following her husband's death, Maria chose not to remarry. Instead, she adopted the austere attire of a novice, which has become a defining aspect of her legacy. Numerous portraits from later years depict her in somber black and white, a reflection of her mourning and commitment to her family's memory.