Luigi del Riccio

Luigi del Riccio was an acquaintance of Michelangelo who was deeply hurt by the death of his nephew Cecchino Bracci. He gave Michelangelo many gifts so that Michelangelo would keep writing him epitaphs.

Michelangelo became irritated by Riccio's gifts and wrote "This piece is said by the trout, and not by me; so if you don't like the verses, don't marinate them any more with pepper." Riccio's friendship with Michelangelo ended when he learned that Riccio had planned to publish all the epitaphs unaltered, and Michelangelo begged him to destroy them. Michelangelo was uncomfortable with the poems homo-eroticism and begged "You certainly have the power to disgrace me." Riccio relented.^[1]

References

Luigi del Riccio, was the son of GIOVANBATTISTA AND ELEONORA DI CRISTOFANO BRACCI, agent of the bank of the family STROZZI, went to Rome when the Medici returned to Florence. While in Rome he was active in the papal court of Paulus III° and close to the florentine artists working there. Michelangelo was among his close friends. When his young nephew Cecchino BRACCI, joined him from florence, he he introduced the young man in the roman society. Cecchino, an attractive noble young man, engaged to one of the doughter of the Strozzi family, died suddenly at seventeen in Rome. The uncle was destroyed by his death. Due to his friendship to Michelangelo, he requested the artist to design his tumb, now in the church of ARA PACIS on the Campidoglio.

he was an account fo the family Strozzi bank