Editing Sofonisba Anguissola (section)

==Family==
[[File:Sofonisba Anguissola, Portrætgruppe med kunstnerens fader Amilcare Anguissola og hendes søskende Minerva og Astrubale, ca. 1559, 0001NMK, Nivaagaards Malerisamling.jpg|262px|thumb|''[[Portrait of the Artist's Family (Sofonisba Anguissola)|Family Portrait of Minerva, Amilcare and Asdrubale Anguissola]]'', {{Circa|1559}}]]

The origin and the name of the noble [[:it:Anguissola|Anguissola]] family are linked to an ancient Byzantine tradition, rich in historical details.<ref name="servizi.ct2.it">{{Cite web | url=https://servizi.ct2.it/ssl/wiki/index.php?title=Anguissola | title=Anguissola – EFL – Società Storica Lombarda}}</ref>

According to this tradition, the Anguissolas are descended from the Constantinopolitan warlord Galvano Sordo or Galvano de Soardi/Sourdi (Σούρδη, a family name still in use today in Greece, [[Constantinople]] and [[Smyrna]]).<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia|last=Gamberini|first=Cecilia|title=Sofonisba Anguissola at the Court of Philip II |encyclopedia=Women Artists in Early Modern Italy|editor-last= Barker |editor-first=Sheila |publisher=Brepols |date=2016 |pages=29–38 |url=https://www.academia.edu/10375100 |isbn=978-1-909400-35-1 |language=en}}</ref> In 717, Galvano served in the [[Byzantine army|army]] of the [[List of Byzantine emperors|Byzantine emperor]] [[Leo III the Isaurian]], and "with an ingenious artificial fire, contributed to [[Siege of Constantinople (717–718)|liberate the city of Constantinople]] from the [[Saracen]]s who had kept it besieged by land and sea".<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_diNLAAAAYAAJ |page=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_diNLAAAAYAAJ/page/n537 32] |title=Repertorio genealogico delle famiglie confermate nobili e dei titolati nobili esistenti nelle provincie venete...|last=Schroeder|first=Franz|date=1830|publisher=Alvisopoli|language=it}}</ref> This "artificial fire" was the so-called [[Greek fire]], an incendiary weapon developed in the late 7th century, which was responsible for many key [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] military victories, most notably the salvation of Constantinople from two [[Siege of Constantinople (674–678)|Arab sieges]], thus securing the Empire's survival.

Since the shield of the Sourdi carried the [[effigy]] of an [[Asp (reptile)|asp]] (in Latin: ''[[Anguis fragilis|anguis]]''),<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://servizi.ct2.it/ssl/wiki/index.php?title=Anguissola|title=Anguissola – EFL – Società Storica Lombarda|website=servizi.ct2.it|language=it|access-date=12 September 2018}}</ref> after Galvano's victory over the [[Umayyad Caliphate|Umayyads]], his brothers-in-arms and the people of [[Constantinople]] exclaimed: "'''''Anguis sola''' fecit victoriam''!", i.e.: "The snake alone brought the victory!" This saying became very popular, and Galvano himself was nicknamed "Anguissola". The emperor eventually bestowed the Anguissola surname to all his descendants.<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/anguissola_%28Enciclopedia-Italiana%29/ | title=ANGUISSOLA in "Enciclopedia Italiana"}}</ref><ref name="servizi.ct2.it"/> In this regard, it has been suggested that the [[monogram]] depicted on Anguissola's miniature self-portrait may contain the family motto "''Anguis sola fecit victoriam''"<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Costa|first=Patrizia|date=1999|title=Sofonisba Anguissola's Self-portrait in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts|journal=Arte Lombarda|volume=125|issue=1|pages=54–62|jstor=43132413}}</ref> or, more simply, the name of Anguissola's father, Amilcare.

Fleeing from a [[Black Death|pestilence that raged in Constantinople]], the descendants of the first Anguissola settled in Italy, intermarried with other noble families such as the [[Komnenos|Komnenoi]], the [[House of Gonzaga|Gonzagas]], the [[House of Caracciolo|Caracciolos]], the Scottis and the [[Visconti of Milan|Viscontis]], and built autonomous estates in [[Piacenza]], [[Cremona]], [[Vicenza]] and other regions of Italy. The Anguissolas who settled in the [[Republic of Venice]] belonged to the [[Patrician (post-Roman Europe)|patriciate]] of its capital, [[Venice]] from 1499 to 1612.