Zadar’s Goldsmith Martin Ivanov Sainović from Koper, Known as Butafogo (Koper? – † Zadar, between February 27 and March 13, 1546)

Abstract

This article is dedicated to the Zadar goldsmith Martin Ivanov Sainović from Koper, known as Butafogo, about whom approximately forty documents, dating from between 1524 and 1546, have been discovered during archival research into Zadar’s 16th-century notarial records. Although the sources currently shed only limited light on Butafogo’s goldsmithing activity – since most of them mention him merely as a witness – their publication nonetheless complements our understanding of Zadar’s 16th-century goldsmithing practices. Among the discovered records, his will composed on February 27, 1546, holds special significance. It reveals that Butafogo was at some point engaged in the production of certain components for the Chest of St Simeon the God-Receiver, commissioned in the 14th century by the Hungarian- Croatian Queen Elizabeth. However, due to the lack of information about the specific chest elements Butafogo may have worked on, we can only speculate as to which of them were produced in his workshop. Nonetheless, his documented involvement in Zadar’s most important medieval artefact firmly places him among the more prominent goldsmiths active in the city during the first half of the 16th century.