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Day 129 – The Botticelli Spoon

My coworker, Daniel, was kind enough to bring this one-of-a-kind souvenir back from his recent trip to Italy. The painting in the shield at the top is Sandro Boticelli’s La Primavera, which was likely commissioned by someone in the Medici family and was completed in 1482.


My friend Kate tells me that Mr. Botticelli got a little wrapped up in the teachings of the charismatic Dominican priest, Girolamo Savonarola, and many of his paintings were burned in Savonarola’s infamous bonfire of the vanities in 1497. Luckily, La Primavera wasn’t one of them.

This spoon doesn’t seem to be haunted, but if it is, it would be by Botticelli himself who, according to Kate, “got super Jesus-ey after Savonarola’s burning.” Not the burning of the paintings; Savonarola himself was burned at the stake for heresy in 1498.

Speaking of Savonarola: there’s a fantastic cocktail named after him:

  • 1.5 oz Carpano Antica
  • 1/2 oz Frangelico
  • 1 oz lemon juice
  • 1 oz lime juice
  • 1 oz simple syrup

Pour the vermouth and Frangelico into an ice-filled glass, add lemon, lime, and simple syrup, stir well. Garnish with orange wedge and a cherry.


Cheers!

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Day 118 – The Pisa Spoon

Everyone knows that on April 28, 1503, Spanish forces soundly defeated the French in the Battle of Cerignola, which took place in the Italian town of the same name, located in the present-day Apulia region near the town of Bari. 

But did you know that what makes this battle famous is that it was most likely the first European battle won using gunpowder firearms? True story, y’all.

I don’t have a Cerignola spoon, but I do have this nice Pisa spoon. 


Pisa (much farther north in the Tuscany region) is well-known for its tower, which has a bit of a tilt due to insufficient foundation on one side. Construction started in 1178 and wasn’t completed until nearly 200 years later because the Republic of Pisa was engaged in constant battles with Florence, Lucca, and Genoa (they make nice salami!)