# Calandrino — The Decameron character guide

> Calandrino in The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Quoth Calandrino, Methinketh Calandrino, the unhappy Calandrino

**First appearance:** 0008-the-fifth-story

## Snapshot

A painter so credulous his friends steal his pig, sell him invisible stones, and convince him he is pregnant — and he believes every word.

## Who they are

Calandrino is the neighborhood simpleton of Florence's painter guild, forever the butt of Bruno and Buffalmacco's elaborate practical jokes. His defining flaw is a bottomless gullibility wedded to greed: he will believe any scheme that promises him profit or pleasure, and his friends exploit this with a craftsman's patience. He matters because his disasters form a comic throughline across the Decameron, turning each of his humiliations into a mirror for the reader's own readiness to believe what flatters.

## Relationships

### [Bruno](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/characters/bruno)

_psychological_

Bruno constantly plays cruel pranks on the gullible Calandrino, manipulating him for amusement and personal gain.

### [Niccolosa](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/characters/niccolosa)

_romantic_

Calandrino becomes infatuated with the prostitute Niccolosa, but his friends exploit his obsession for their own amusement.

### [Buffalmacco](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/characters/buffalmacco)

_psychological_

Buffalmacco, along with Bruno, constantly tricks and exploits the naive Calandrino for entertainment and profit.

### [Bruno](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/characters/bruno)

_psychological_

Bruno constantly plays cruel pranks on the gullible Calandrino, manipulating him for amusement and personal gain.

### [Buffalmacco](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/characters/buffalmacco)

_psychological_

Buffalmacco, along with Bruno, constantly tricks and exploits the naive Calandrino for entertainment and profit.

### [Bruno](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/characters/bruno)

_psychological_

Bruno constantly plays cruel pranks on the gullible Calandrino, manipulating him for amusement and personal gain.

### [Niccolosa](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/characters/niccolosa)

_romantic_

Calandrino becomes infatuated with the prostitute Niccolosa, but his friends exploit his obsession for their own amusement.

### [Niccolosa](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/characters/niccolosa)

_romantic_

Calandrino becomes infatuated with the prostitute Niccolosa, but his friends exploit his obsession for their own amusement.

## In the story

### [The Third Story](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/chapters/the-third-story)

A simple-witted painter who is tricked into believing he found the heliotrope stone; he beats his wife after the spell is broken.

### [The Sixth Story](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/chapters/the-sixth-story)

The gullible victim whose pig is stolen and who is then tricked into paying blackmail.

### [The Seventh Story](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/chapters/the-seventh-story)

Mentioned in the opening as the subject of previous laughter, but not directly involved in this story.

### [The Third Story](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/chapters/the-third-story)

The gullible victim who is convinced he is pregnant and pays for a fake cure.

### [The Fifth Story](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/chapters/the-fifth-story)

Falls in love with Niccolosa and is tricked by Bruno and Buffalmacco into believing a talisman will win her over.

### [The Sixth Story](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/chapters/the-sixth-story)

Mentioned as having previously provided laughter for the company, but not directly involved in this story.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/characters/calandrino
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_decameron_se/characters