the lesser guilds to only seven. This was defeated. But in 1534, the fourteen lesser guilds were arranged into four Universities, and saw many of their privileges curtailed. Arti Maggiori Arti Mediane Arti Minori Artists In Florence a separate Guild of Saint Luke for artists did not exist. Painters belonged to the guild of the Doctors and Apothecaries (Arte dei Medici e Speziali) as they bought their pigments from the apothecaries, while sculptors were members of the Masters of Stone and Wood (Maestri di Pietra e Legname), or the metalworkers if working in that medium. They were also frequently members in the confraternity of St. Luke (Compagnia di San Luca)—which had been founded as early as 1349—although it was a separate entity from the guild system. In the sixteenth century, the Compagnia di San Luca began to meet at SS. Annunziata, and sculptors, who had previously been members of a confraternity dedicated to St. Paul (Compagnia di San Paolo), also joined. This form of the compagnia developed into the Florentine Accademia e Compagnia delle arti del Disegno in 1563, which was then formally incorporated into the city's guild system in 1572. The guilds were important patrons of the arts. The statues of the Orsanmichele were a lavish joint, and highly competitive, effort, the Calimala were responsible for the Baptistry and paid for Ghiberti's famous doors, while the Lana were responsible for the cathedral itself, and paid for the cupola, the altar frontal and other works, and the Seta built and ran the Ospedale degli Innocenti. Universities Given the prominent role of the guilds in the government of Florence, in 1427, Florentine greater nobles, led by Rinaldo degli Albizzi and Niccolò da Uzzano, attempted to introduce measures in the Signoria of Florence to reduce the number of minor guilds from fourteen to seven, thereby reducing the number of their representatives in the government. This attempt was narrowly defeated, largely by the singular efforts of Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici, an action which cemented the popularity of the Medici family among the common burghers (against the Grandi) and helped them rise to power. But a little over a century later, another Medici, Cosimo I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, reduced the number of minor guilds from fourteen to four, by grouping disparate guilds together into "universities". The four new universities organized by the law of July 17, 1534 were: L'Università di