LUCIANO MONTESILUCIANO MONTESI
Occupation: Custodian of the Darkhold;
rank of Monsignore within the
Roman Catholic Church
Affiliations: Cagliostro; various within the Roman Catholic
Church;
worshipped the Judeo-Christian-Islamic God
Enemies: Chthon and his agents
Known Relatives: Paolo Montesi (ancestor, deceased), "Raffaela" Montesi (ancestor, deceased; see comments), Giacomo Montesi (ancestor,
deceased), Marcello Montesi (ancestor, deceased), Giuseppe Montesi
(descendant, deceased), Vittorio Montesi (descendant), Victoria Montesi (adoptive
descendant); unidentified son (last name almost certainly Montesi, presumably deceased); presumptive unidentified wife (last name also most likely Montesi);
unidentified father and mother (last name almost certainly Montesi);
various unidentified grandparents, great-grandparents (and possibly
previous generations), daughters-in-law, granddaughters-in-law,
etc.
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: The Vatican, Rome
First Appearance: (Unidentified) Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme#13/2 (January, 1990);
(last name used and referenced in story) Unpublished “Book of Vishanti” story;
identified in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z hardcover#2: Cagliostro
entry (2008)
Powers/Abilities: Marcello
had extensive knowledge of the theology and the Catholic church, as well as
vast occult knowledge.
His
strong religious faith allowed him to read the Darkhold without being corrupted
by it.
Luciano's lifespan was elongated by his proximity to the Darkhold.
Height: Approximately 5'7"
Weight: Approximately 170 lbs.
Eyes: Dark (presumably brown)
Hair: Bald (brown in youth; presumably brown eyebrows)
History:
(Jean-Marc Lofficier's unpublished Book of the Vishanti / Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z hardcover#2: Cagliostro
entry) <Circa 1774> - It is speculated that at that time Cagliostro lost possession of his copy of the Darkhold, in unrevealed circumstances.
(Dracula Lives#5/4 - BTS) - Cagliostro’s wife, Lorenza Serafina, was turned into a vampire by Dracula in Paris just before the French Revolution began, circa 1789 A.D.
(Unpublished “Book of Vishanti” story) - Seeking
the means to cure her, Cagliostro left France and went to Rome where he met
Luciano Montesi in the Vatican circa 1790. But the Darkhold only told how to kill
vampires, not cure them, and Luciano was equally
Comments: Created by Jean-Marc Lofficier & Roy Thomas, and David & Dan Day.
The unpublished story was first referenced in the Cagliostro profile in All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z#2: Cagliostro entry (2006), although Luciano was not mentioned, nor was a Montesi...just that Cagliostro consulted the Vatican and that he subsequently staked Lorenza.
The
final panel of Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme#13/2 referenced future
Montesis following Marcello's death. The Montesi that would later be
identified as Luciano was slotted for a Tales of the Vishanti to give
the secret history of Cagliostro, but it wasn't published. Jean-Marc
Lofficier provided the unpublished story, and the information was
included with editorial approval in Cagliostro's handbook entries, with
the hardcover entry providing the first name of Luciano, courtesy of Jean-Marc Lofficier. At
the time of this profile, Jean-Marc Lofficier agreed that the
unidentified Montesi appearing at the end of the #13/2 Tales of the
Vishanti story was Luciano.
The
name of Luciano's parents and son (or brother and nephew), so far, is unrevealed unrevealed.
Paolo
Montesi's wife was not shown on panel, nor was she named as anything
other than the mother of his son. However, as Paolo was both a deeply
religious man and he had been given dispensation to marry to sire
children, this was almost certainly his wife. As not taking a husband's
last name was not common at the time, I would think her last name was
almost certainly Montesi. Jean-Marc Lofficier confirmed this, and he
provided the name Raffaela for her. At the time of this profile,
however, that information has yet to see print in a Marvel Comic.
By the same token, Luciano presumably was almost certainly married to a
woman who likely took his last name and was the mother of his child (as
the Montesi line continued after Luciano's death, although he possibly
did not marry but instead had a brother to continue the line).
However, as such a wife (or son, etc.) wasn't even mentioned, we didn't
seek to provide
a name for her.
--Snood
This profile was completed 05/21/2021, but its publication was delayed as it was intended for the Appendix 20th anniversary's celebratory event.
Profile by Jean-Marc Lofficier, with assistance from Snood (text editing) and Loki (digital image supplier).
CLARIFICATIONS:
Luciano Montesi has no known connection to:
Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme#13/2, last page, last panel
Appearances:
Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme#13/2 (January, 1990) - Roy Thomas,
Jean-Marc & Randy Lofficier (writers), David & Dan Day
(artists), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Unpublished “Book of Vishanti” story - Jean-Marc Lofficier (writer)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z hardcover#2: Cagliostro
entry
First posted: 09/25/2021
Last updated: 09/24/2021
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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