George and the Princess of Trebizond; in the
ducal palace of Mantua he paintedScenes
of War and Chivalry. These are the only
frescoes Pisanello completed that have sur-
vived to the present day.
Pisanello moved to Rome in later years
and completed frescoes in the Basilica of
Saint John Lateran that had been left un-
finished by Gentile da Fabriano on his
death. He returned to Verona in 1432 and
spent the rest of his life traveling from one
aristocratic court to the next, seeking pa-
tronage and enjoying a reputation as one
of the most skilled painters in Italy. In Flo-
rence, he completed portraits of the em-
peror Sigismund and aPortrait of a Man.
In the city of Ferrara he painted two fa-
mous works, Portrait of Lionello d’Este
andMadonna with Saints Anthony and
George.
Pisanello is known for his skillful
drawings and his rendering of clothes,
hats, fabric, and elegant costumes. He was
also skilled at drawing animals, birds, and
from nature, a talent he shared with Paolo
Uccello. In 1439, he designed a medal for
the Byzantine emperor John VII Paleolo-
gus, who was in Italy to attend the Coun-
cil of Ferrara. He was renowned for his
skill at designing and casting medals.
Rather than stamping the medals with a
press, which was the traditional method,
he cast them from bronze and created the
designs and portraits in relief, in which
the design emerges from the flat surface of
the surrounding material. He cast other
commemorative medals for Filippo Vis-
conti, Francesco Sforza, King Alfonso V of
Naples, Sigismondo Malatesta, the ruler of
Rimini, and for the wedding of Lionello
d’Este and Maria of Aragon.
SEEALSO: Uccello, Paolo
Pius II ............................................
(1405–1464)
Pope from 1458 to 1464, a determined op-
ponent of the conciliar movement and the
Ottoman Turks. Born as Eneo Piccolomini
in Corsignano, in Tuscany, he was the son
of a poor noble, Silvio de Piccolomini. He
attended the University of Siena and in
Florence, where he learned classical lan-
guages and literature. While later studying
law in Siena, a bishop invited him to join
him at the Council of Basel, where he re-
mained for several years. He served several
bishops as a secretary and by 1435 was
working for Cardinal Albergati, who sent
him on a secret diplomatic mission to
Scotland. On returning to the city of Basel,
he won a seat on the council, which was
negotiating to end the schism in the
church, and won appointment to several
ceremonial posts. His enjoyment of life’s
more sensual pleasures prevented him
from taking the vows of the clergy, how-
ever. He favored study of the classics and
writing poetry, and in 1442 was named an
official poet laureate by Emperor Frederick
III, who also appointed him to a position
at the imperial court in Vienna. Piccolo-
mini wrote novels, verse, and plays, but in
search of a more secure life he finally
agreed to join the church.
In 1445 Piccolomini traveled to Rome
and in the next year was ordained as a dea-
con. He was appointed as the bishop of
Trieste in 1447 and in 1450 bishop of
Siena. Frederick sent him on important
diplomatic missions, while Pope Calixtus
III also rewarded his service with an ap-
pointment as a cardinal in 1456. Piccolo-
mini used his appointments to gather ben-
efices—profitable estates and property—
and soon grew wealthy.
In 1458, he succeeded Calixtus III as
pope, taking the name of Pius after thePius II