这个家庭原本来自托斯卡纳的一个村庄但最终迁移到佛罗伦萨,其资本。“他们是银行家,”Bartlett说道。“开始di Giovanni Bicci·德·美第奇(1360 - 1429),他建立了几个分支的美第奇家族银行最赚钱的教皇法院有关。他赚了大量的钱这样做,许多佛罗伦萨银行家一样。”(It's unclear where their surname came from but "medici" is the plural of "medico" or "doctor" in Italian. So, you should refer to the family members plural as "the Medici" rather than "the Medicis," according to Bartlett and others.)
“关于柯西莫看到艺术和资助政策的工具,”Bartlett说道。“他真的相信美化城市,还把它的尊严和意大利的事情reputazione——“名声”或“声誉。”Towns like to be talked about in positive ways and this gave people an opportunity to do just that."