ABSTRACT
Cosimo de Medici died in 1464, leaving his semi-crippled eldest son, Piero II Gottoso (the Gouty) as his heir: he was to rule Florence until his death from gout in 1469. Two inventories of Piero's possessions were taken, in 1456, before he inherited, and in 1465 afterwards. The 1465 inventory should therefore reflect those objects which he had inherited from his father. The inventory reveals that Cosimo's collections of antique coins, carved gems and vessels carved in hard stones had become very important by 1464. Between the two lists, Piero's gold medals (a term which includes classical coins) had risen from 53 to 100, his silver medals from 300 to 503, and the gemstones and vessels had also been similarly augmented.
