# Esordij per la quarantia criminal. Manuscript on paper in italian. Venice, ca. 1650

**Autore:** Autore Sconosciuto
**Dati Editoriali:** S.D.
**Codice Archivio:** 159
**Prezzo:** 950 USD
**Stato Commerciale:** Disponibile
**Link Ufficiale Collezione:** https://www.govirarebooks.com/products/autore-sconosciuto-esordij-per-la-quarantia-1650

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## Descrizione Accademica e Analisi
Folio (290 x 144 mm). [126 + 8 blank] leaves. Collation (13 quires): I - XIII10. Contemporary cardboards (stained and soiled), faded inked title on spine. Boockblock partially detached from the binding. Uncut with deckle edges. First and last few leaves lightly stained, but overall a genuine copy. Written in brown ink in a cursive italian hand, no indication of title or author.The manuscript contains several introductory texts intended as samples for use in various judicial or political situations. The texts are arranged either by institutional occasion or by subject.The first section comprises introductory speeches and perorations to be delivered in front of the Criminal Quarantia in relation to civil trials. The Council of Forty, also known as the Quarantia, dates back to the late 12th or early 13th century and remained active until the fall of the Venetian Republic. Throughout the seventeenth century, the Quarantia occupied a central position in the constitutional and judicial structure of the Venetian Republic while Venice was confronting military and financial pressures during the long conflict of the Cretan War against the Ottoman Empire. Originally established as a judicial council of forty members, by the early modern period the institution had evolved into a complex magistracy divided into separate branches responsible for criminal justice, financial governance, public debt administration and the regulation of commercial disputes. The magistracy also participated in electoral procedures and collaborated closely with other governing bodies, including the Senate and the Council of Ten. This contributed to the balance of powers that characterised the Venetian mixed constitution. The second part of the volume is the longest and contains thanksgiving speeches, praise for criminal attorneys, eulogies to senators of the Venetian Republic and other orations arranged by subject, such as testament, honour, homicide, pride, tears, faith, fortune, human unhappiness, evil, human ingenuity, a husband's affection for his wife, the priesthood, etc.The final section of the manuscript (12 pp.) contains notes on Martialis written by Giovanni Francesco Businello.With its many cases taken from real courtroom experiences, the volume provides a vivid insight into 17th-century Venetian society. For instance, we read about an 'old adulteress' who was defended only because adultery was considered a 'younger crime' (committed by a young person); therefore, her accusation was deemed inadequate. In another case, the lawyer insults the woman heavily, but defends her, claiming that if her husband deemed her worthy of a beating, it was almost impossible that anyone else could have loved her. Apart from the final few pages on Martialis, it is unclear what the connection is between the present manuscript and Busenello. The manuscript appears to have been written for personal use and contains a variety of texts on the border between literature, political oratory and judicial speeches.Giovanni Francesco Busenello (Venice, 24 settembre 1598 – Legnaro, 27 ottobre 1659) was born into a wealthy and influential cittadino family that, despite its prestige and long administrative tradition, remained excluded from the highest ranks of the Venetian patriciate and their courts. His father, Alessandro Busenello, served as secretary of the Venetian Senate and was deeply involved in the administration of the Scuola della Misericordia, while other members of the family occupied important public offices within the Republic. Busenello himself repeatedly emphasized the antiquity and social importance of his lineage, tracing its origins to the medieval Della Torre family of Milan. He received a refined humanistic and legal education, first under the guidance of his father, then through the teachings of Paolo Sarpi, and finally at the University of Padua, where he attended the philosophical lectures of Cesare Cremonini. These intellectual experiences contributed to the development of his sceptical and libertine outlook, characteristic of many Venetian intellectual circles of the seventeenth century. In 1620 he married Barbara Bianchi, with whom he had several children, and shortly afterwards began practicing law in Venice. Contemporary documents and his own writings portray him as a successful advocate and capable administrator of the family estate, owner of urban properties and country residences near Padua. Alongside his legal profession, Busenello cultivated an intense literary activity and became deeply integrated into the cultural life of Baroque Venice. He maintained relationships with prominent writers and intellectuals, including Giambattista Marino, Giovan Francesco Loredano, and numerous members of the Accademia degli Incogniti, one of the most influential literary circles of seventeenth-century Venice. Strongly influenced by Marino's poetic innovations, Busenello abandoned his early Petrarchan style in favour of a more sensual, theatrical, and ironic mode of expression marked by eroticism, moral ambiguity, and rhetorical exuberance.Busenello is best remembered today for his libretti for early Venetian opera, which occupy a central place in the history of seventeenth-century melodrama. His most famous work, L'incoronazione di Poppea (1642), was set to music by Claudio Monteverdi and remains one of the masterpieces of early opera. He also collaborated extensively with Francesco Cavalli on works such as Gli amori di Apollo e Dafne, Didone, and Statira. These libretti reveal a sophisticated combination of historical material, political reflection, sensuality, and theatrical spectacle, while also reflecting the cosmopolitan and morally ambiguous atmosphere of Baroque Venice. His poetic and prose writings provide a vivid representation of Venetian society during a period perceived as one of political and moral decline. Frequently employing Venetian dialect alongside literary Italian, Busenello developed satirical and often pessimistic reflections on corruption, social hypocrisy, the failures of justice, and the instability of human existence. His works repeatedly evoke a world “turned upside down,” populated by corrupt judges, opportunists, false intellectuals, and morally compromised elites. At the same time, his writings preserve invaluable evidence of everyday life, social customs, and linguistic practices in seventeenth-century Venice. In his later years Busenello suffered from illness, personal losses, and growing disillusionment, although he continued to write prolifically until his death in 1659. His dialect poetry and literary language were later studied by Emanuele Antonio Cicogna, who recognized their importance as documents of Venetian linguistic and cultural history. Today Busenello is regarded not only as a major librettist of early opera, but also as a significant witness to the intellectual, social, and moral contradictions of Baroque Venice (cf. M. Capucci, Busenello, Giovanni Francesco, in: "Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani", vol. 15, Rome, 1972, s.v.).

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## Bibliografia di Riferimento
Riferimenti bibliografici non inseriti.

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