Giovanni Giocondo

Fra Giovanni Giocondo (c. 1433 – 1515) was an Italian architect, antiquary, archaeologist, and classical scholar.

He appears in Assassin's Creed II, where he had many conversations with Francesco de' Pazzi about his son, Vieri de' Pazzi. One of those letters was acquired by Vieri.

Letter

Messer Francesco,

I have done as requested and spoken with your son. I agree with your assessment, though only in part. Yes, Vieri is brash and prone to act without forethought. And he has a habit of treating the mercenari like playthings. I've received reports of at least three men being disfigured as a result. But I do not think him, as you put it, beyond repair. Rather, I believe the solution to be a simple matter.

He seeks your approval. Your attention. These outbursts of his are a result of insecurities borne out of a sense of inadequacy. He speaks of you often and fondly and expresses a desire to be closer to you. So if he is loud and foul and angry - I believe it is simply because he wants to be noticed. He wants to be loved.

Act as you see fit, on the information I've given you here. But I must ask that we end this correspondence. Were he to discover the nature of our conversations, I fear what might become of me.

Yours in confidence,

Fra Giocondo