Matteo Nuti nel cantiere di Porta Maggiore a Fano. Una ricostruzione storico-documentaria del ruolo del maestro muradore

From the 1420s the maestro muradore Matteo Nuti was active in Fano – a vicariate of the Marca – working alongside Pandolfo III Malatesta first, and then his successors Sigismondo Pandolfo and Malatesta Novello, during the crucial years of strengthening the Malatesta power over the territories linked to the vicariates of Rimini, Fano, and Cesena. The close relationship between the Malatestas' governing activities and their experience as military leaders serving the main political powers of the Peninsula, made the Malatesta court an environment particularly attuned to contemporary discussions on ars militaris, shortly after the advent of the so-called “modern fortifications”. Within this political-cultural framework, Matteo Nuti worked on many of the main Malatesta construction sites, contributing to the building of civil but especially military works. Among his last documented activities is his significant contribution to the reconstruction of one of the main military strongholds of the city of Fano: Porta Maggiore, which was almost entirely demolished by Federico da Montefeltro's troops during the siege of the city in 1463, marking the end of Malatesta's rule over Fano. The few studies from the 19th and 20th centuries dedicated to Nuti have attempted to chronologically reconstruct his activities between Fano, Cesena, and Rimini, without delving into the dynamics of patronage and his professional role within both civil and military architectural sites, as well as the political, economic, and cultural society linked to the Malatestas. Starting from Matteo Nuti's presence within the construction site of Porta Maggiore, this essay aims to clarify these latter aspects by examining some documents preserved within the State Archives of Fano.