Vatican coins and medals,™" serving under Popes 

 Benedict X\', Pius XI, and Pius XII. He succeeded 

 Francesco Bianciii, the oflicial medal engraver of 

 Pope Pius XI. 



Mistruzzi was a versatile artist. Producing not only 

 an iinpressi\e number of medal and coin dies, 

 he devoted his time also to sculpture. The Pieta 

 in the private chapel of the Nerazzini family in 

 Montepulciano, the Vergine .Siiggia, a madonna for 

 the tomb of tlie Moretti family in X'illaorba, the 

 St. Francis in the Basilica of St. Anthony in Padua, 

 plus many chandeliers, tabernacles, and other re- 

 ligious objects are examples of his prodigious activity. 



In his role as official engraver at the Vatican he 

 created the dies for the complete coinage in gold, 

 silver, nickel, and copper of Pope Pius XI, and used 

 the same reverse types for the coinage of Pope Pius 

 XII in 1930. 



The new reform trend foimd its expression also 

 in Mistruzzi's coinage. After the long hiatus in 

 papal strikings since 1870, the coinage of Pius XI, 

 "the Pope of Conciliation," signaled a new era, when 

 a centuries-old tradition and art were resumed with 

 new vigor in accord with the esthetic expectations 

 of modern times. Mistruzzi emliarked upon this 

 task with the reserve and moderation which distin- 

 guish his whole artistic temperament. His sensitive 

 personality was adverse to any radical changes. 

 With tlie aristocratic restraint of a master, he tried 

 to create new and, at the same time, artistically 

 attractive symbols of an old ecclesiastic heraldry, 

 intent on not sacrificing the dignity of the institution. 



Motivated by his exquisite sense of the decorative, 

 he created a charming group of religious figures 

 and scenes, representing among others the Savior, 

 the enthroned Madonna with Child, St. Peter in 

 the boat, St. John with the Lamb, .Xrchangel Michael, 

 St. Peter, and St. Paul. The chief artistic value of 

 these scenes consists in their graceful harmony. 

 The figure of the Savior on the gold inO-lire piece 

 of 1929 (fig. 127), impressive in its spiritualit>', the 

 dia|)hanous figure of the Madonna on the 1-lire piece, 



or the Good Shepherd on the 2 lire (fig. 128) are 

 gracious, serene compositions, cut to please the taste 

 of the broad mass of believers, and not subtle creations 

 reserved for the sophisticated art-lmrr. 



Fig. 127. — V.\Tic.\N, Pius XI, 100 lire, 1929 '"- 

 (Div. of Numismatics photo) 



The larger part of Mistruzzi's activity at the papal 

 mint was devoted to the engraving of medals. They 

 can be divided, according to Patrignani's group- 

 ings, into annual medals, tho.se commemorating 



Fig. 128. — V.^Tic-xN, Pius XI, obverses of I and 2 lire, 1929"^ 

 (Div. of Numismatics photo) 



exceptional events, and those celebrating different 

 personalities connected with the Vatican.^** 



The annual medals issued each year during the 

 entire pontificate of a pope usually commemorate 

 the significant events of the preceding year.^"^ Among 

 this group the most impressive compositions are the 

 Consistory of Cardinals before the Bernini altar in 

 St. Peter's Basilica (engraved on the reverse of the 

 medal of year VIII) ^°' and a scene representing the 

 Pope in prayer for world peace on the medal of year 

 V (1943).''" The last two decades, with their 

 abundance of extraordinary events, inspired a great 

 numlx-r of special medals. Among them should be 



™i F.L., Kas.X (1931), pp. 110 112; Patrionani, I.V (1952), 

 vol. 3, no. 1, p. 3; XiimR (1940), pp. 31-34; Mm,R (1948), 

 vol. 14, pp. 30-38; I'agani, RLV (1949), pp. 64-65; Aes, 

 ^fum^{ (1935), vol. 1, pp. 8-13. 



312 CXI, coin 1 ; Pagani, Afonrlr ilalianc, coin 1 576. 



"" C.\7, coins 4, 5; Paoani, Monele italiane, coins 1603, 1612. 



3»< Patrionani, .Xiimli (1948), no.s. 1-3, p. 30. For other 

 medals, sec also Johnson, Le rhvmlir/tziorii italiane. 



305 Annual medals were published in XiimR (1935), no. 1, 

 pp. 14-15; (1939), no. 3, p. 79; (1943-1945), pp. 77-78; 

 (1947), nos. 1-3, p. 42; (1949), nos. 1-6, p. 73. See also most 

 issues of IN. 



30ii.XumR (1947), nos. 1-3, p. 42. 



3"' Published in .XmnR (1943-1945), p. 77. 



56 



BULLETIN 229: CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE MISEUM OF HISTORY AND TECHNOLOGY 



