The Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota has a wonderful exhibit going on right now called "The Triumph of Marriage: Painted Cassoni of the Renaissance." Cassoni were large "treasure chests" that were commissioned by the father of the intended bride. They would be filled with all the belongings she would need to journey into her new life. The objects in her cassoni would also be the only items she returned home with if her husband died. The chests had beautiful painted scenes on each panel and in the fifteenth century most were dismantled. Because they had been painted by popular artists, each panel was sold as a valuable work of art. There are very few intact cassoni left in the world. I attended an educator's workshop on Saturday where we learned about cassoni and made our own using shoe boxes, cut-outs from magazines and scrapbook papers. It was great fun and I have a lot to teach my kids now thanks to the Ringling Museum of Art!
