Bernhard Schirg Libros

Pietro Lazzaroni (ca. 1420–ca. 1500), a Professor of Rhetoric at the University of Pavia, was a prolific author of neo-Latin panegyrics during the Italian Renaissance. This study focuses on his longest poem, dedicated in 1497 to Pope Alexander VI. A critical edition and detailed commentary make this previously unexamined poem accessible for the first time. An archive-based analysis of the historical context reveals the poem's significance as a gift amid the strained relations between the Duchy of Milan and Rome. The research reconstructs how Lazzaroni completed the work rapidly, allowing his master Ludovico Sforza to position it appropriately for the dedication. It explores the efficient methods he employed to produce over 2100 hexameters in a timely manner. Additionally, the relationship between this poem and Lazzaroni's 35 earlier dedicatory works is analyzed. The study raises questions about the 'economy of poetry,' providing new insights into the practice of panegyric text production.