La via degli orafi: The strange journey of the goldsmith

As any practitioner of the arts has noticed, there is an undeclared yet firmly established hierarchy in the art world. Painting, and some forms of sculpture stand at the zenith of the realm, while the other arts---pottery, weaving, glasswork, and specific to this examination---goldwork---seem to defer to them. This was not always so. In the Middle Ages and the Early Renaissance the goldsmith was the undisputed and unrivaled king of all makers of art. Painting and sculpture were merely decorative arts. But the status of the goldsmith changed. To understand how this phenomenon took place, one must examine the changes that took place in social attitudes and historical conditions in Florence, Italy, from the turn of the first millennium until the end of the High Renaissance. The purpose of this document is to provide an understanding of the reason behind the stratification difference between art and craft.