The essay presents a small bronze cannon of a type known as a culverin in the Wallace Collection, London. Exceptional for the sophistication and beauty of its decoration, the culverin is signed as having been designed in 1577 by one Giovanni Sant’Uliana. Although he and his family have hitherto been all but entirely forgotten, Giovanni (c. 1503-1587) was a leading member of Paduan society, counting Pietro Aretino, Angelo Beolco (Il Ruzante) and Andrea Cornaro among his friends. He played a major role in Paduan civic life and was knighted for his diplomatic and other services to the Venetian Republic. He also had close relations with the Basilica di Sant’Antonio di Padova, in 1562 negotiating on behalf of the Arca the completion of Jacopo Sansovino’s relief of The Miracle of the Maiden Eurilia for the Cappella di Sant’Antonio. Contemporary evidence suggests that Giovanni Sant’Uliana was known for the nobility of his comportment, and he seems to have been passionately interested in notions of chivalry and honour. At the Battle of Lepanto in 1571, Giovanni’s eldest sons Marcantonio and Camillo captained and served on the galley provided by the city of Padua, winning much booty, which adorned the family’s palace in via San Francesco. The small cannon might have been designed to complement in some way these displays. Designed towards the end of Giovanni’s life, it may have been worked up into a model and cast by the Paduan sculptor Vincenzo Grandi (c. 1480/90?-1577/78), with whose refined bronze artefacts, such as candlesticks and inkstands, it has much in common. Giovanni Sant’Uliana is buried in the Santo, in today’s Cappella di Santa Chiara, built after his death by his second son Camillo Sant’Uliana. The architectural decoration remains largely intact, as does the tombstone of Giovanni and Camillo Sant’Uliana.
