Seite - 372 - in Jacopo Strada and Cultural Patronage at the Imperial Court - The Antique as Innovation, Band 1

Chapter 7372 A house like that cost quite a lot: in 1567, when it was still far from finished, Strada boasted to Stopio of having spent seven- to eight-thousand talleri or thaler, and it is clear that this taxed his financial potential to the limits. His financial troubles in the 1570s doubtless were caused in part by the huge expense of the house itself and of the aristocratic and sumptuous lifestyle it required. When he tried to sell it to Vilém z Rožmberk in 1573, he asked for ‘acht dausent Daller, wie wol es mich mer den neyne gekost hatt’; three years later he claimed that it had cost him over ten thousand Thaler, and in 1581 the amount he mentioned was even over twelve thousand Thaler.13 This is a huge sum in relation to Strada’s annual salary of three hundred Gulden, and makes it quite clear that his salary was only a minor part of his income—the payments he received from Hans Jakob Fugger and later from Duke Albrecht v of Bavaria of the nine to ten thousand numismatic drawings of his Magnum ac novum opus, at a Thaler a piece, come closer to explain Strada’s ability to finance a project of this sort. His position as Imperial Architect, however, must directly or indirectly have facilitated the construction of his house. Occasionally he was granted building materials from the Imperial works, and he may like- wise have been allowed to use some of its infrastructure, such as scaffolding and machinery.14 Thanks to his position he had direct access to the available specialized labour forces, and at least some of his immediate colleagues—the architects and master-masons he worked with at court—will have exchanged their expertise on structural and technical aspects for his artistic advice and access to the relevant materials in his collections. a discretion es was gelten soll gerendt, als nun Irer Fürstl. Durchl. Parthey soliches gewun- nen, haben sich die Sechs als herr von Thurn von Hoyos Jägermeister Teuffel von Zelting vnd von Khünigsperg mit einander verglichen, Iren Fürstl. Durchl. etc. ein Pangöth vnnd Tanz zehalten, haben also ein gar stetlich Pangöth zuberait Ier Fürstl. Durchl. etc. vnd vier Taffel Frawen vnd Junckhfrawen darauf geladen die auch khumben vnd nach dem nacht- mal biss auf halbe ainss in die nacht getanzet, auch ein schöne Mumerey die beiden Irer Durchl. etc. Mumschanz gebracht gehalten worden, Ier Durchl. etc. sein zwar gar lustig vnnd frölich gewesen, vnnd ist soliches Pangöth vnd Tanz in des Sträda hauss gehalten worden<...>. 13 Stopio to Fugger, Venice 5 Sept. 1567, BHStA-LA 4852, f. 63/57: ‘Il Strada è partito 3 dì sono per Mantua <...>Iddio li dia bon viagio, andando a questo modo a spese d’altri a fare fatti suoi, si puo fabbricare delli palazzi, come si è vantato qui di haverne fatto una in Vienna ove ha speso 6 m. taleri, et per compire ne spendera altri 2 o 3.’; DOCS: 1573-12-18; 1576-06- 16; 1576-09-00; 1581-11-02. 14 In July 1564 Strada was conceded wood for use in the construction of his house; in Febru- ary 1569 a similar request for lime, by this time probably to be used for plaster rather than for mortar ( DOCS. 1564-07-08; 1564-07-11; 1569-02-00).