A judge brought to Florence by one of its avaricious and miserly chief magistrates, Niccola da San Lepidio is the victim of a prank played by Maso del Saggio, Ribi, and Matteuzzo in Filostrato’s eighth tale (VIII, 5). He is skinny and unkempt and he dresses like a country bumpkin in clothes that are dirty and don’t fit properly. This allows the pranksters to pull his pants down in public, exposing both his body and the magistrate’s failure to bring good judges to the city.
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Niccola da San Lepidio Character Timeline in The Decameron
The timeline below shows where the character Niccola da San Lepidio appears in The Decameron. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Day 8: Fifth Tale
...Their “inborn miserliness and avarice” inclines them to picking judges and notaries of low character. Niccola da San Lepidio , a man who looks more like a coppersmith than a man of law, is...
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...around the courts just to watch (as people often do) when he catches sight of Niccola da San Lepidio ’s “curious and witless appearance.” His judge’s cap is dirty, his gown hangs down beneath...
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Realizing that someone could easily conceal himself under Niccola da San Lepidio ’s platform and that there’s a hole big enough for a man’s hand beneath his...
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Confused, Niccola da San Lepidio tries to cover himself with his robe, but Maso del Saggio and Ribi hold on...
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