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ISMed as a research laboratory

Between history and philology: two Venetian cases from the sixteenth century

February 12, 2026 – 10:00 a.m.

CNR-ISMed
Humanities Centre (6th floor)
Via Cardinale Guglielmo Sanfelice 8
Naples

REMOTE ACCESS
on the Teams platform

Poster

The seminar will examine, from a philological and palaeographic point of view, the official correspondence of two Venetian ambassadors who, in the early decades of the sixteenth century, were entrusted with delicate diplomatic missions abroad: Alvise Mocenigo, sent to the French king Louis XII (1505-6), and Gasparo Contarini, who accompanied the itinerant court of Charles V (1521-25). Copies of the letters sent have been preserved for both correspondences; ten originals by Contarini have also been preserved.

This presentation will attempt to show how philology and palaeography, applied to the texts in question, can be decisive in reconstructing the mechanisms that regulated the chancelleries of Venetian ambassadors residing abroad, as well as in understanding the genesis and purpose of the dispatches.

THE SPEAKER. Aurelio Malandrino is an ISMed researcher at the Milan branch. He mainly deals with 13th- and 14th-century Italian literature, with a particular interest in the tradition and reception of the works of Francesco Petrarca. In recent years, he has intensified his research into the relationship between the works of Petrarca and Boccaccio in order to explore any direct intertextual links and the resulting critical implications. Outside the Petrarchan sphere, he has taken a philological interest in the dispatches of two Venetian ambassadors who carried out delicate missions abroad at the beginning of the 16th century (Alvise Mocenigo in France and Gasparo Contarini at the imperial court of Charles V). In 2022-24, he taught Methodologies of Critical Edition of Documents at the School of Archival Science of the State Archives of Florence. He holds a second level ASN in sectors 10/F1 and 10/F3. He is editor of the journal Studi Petrarcheschi.

PROGRAMME

SPEAKER
Aurelio Malandrino
CNR-ISMed

INTRODUCES AND MODERATES
Riccardo Drusi
Ca’ Foscari University of Venice

FINAL DISCUSSION

SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE
Gabriella Corona, Claudia Di Somma (CNR-ISMed)

INFO AND CONTACTS
segreteria.direzione@ismed.cnr.it

HOW TO PARTICIPATE
The seminar is open to the public, subject to availability.
It is possible to participate remotely via the Teams platform