11
A Medici as Mercury
HERMES-MERCURIUS, standing on the left of La Primavera, is represented as a swarthy young man in his late teens, showing elements readily associated with the cadet branch of the Medici. He carries the caduceus, the traditional hall-mark of the messenger.1 To the modern eye his manner appears to be casual and removed but not so at the time, when the significance of what he was doing would have been well understood in the Medici circle. With his back to the rest of the action, he faces away and is preoccupied with the clouds above his head. This has been a source of confusion. Additionally, one questions why he is attracting the attention of the central Grace. Of the many questions raised by this figure, the most important is why this messanger of the gods and conduc
