Anton Francesco Doni and his Librarie: Bibliographical Friend or Fiend?

This article challenges the critical consensus on Anton Francesco Doni's ground-breaking vernacular bibliographies, the Libraria of 1550 and the Seconda Libraria of 1551. The former is usually considered a faithful guide to the world of Italian printed books in the first half of the sixteenth c...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Forum for modern language studies 2009-01, Vol.45 (1), p.90-107
Main Author: Bradbury, Jonathan David
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anton Francesco
Doni
Libraria
Poligrafi
Renaissance bibliography
Seconda Libraria
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Summary:This article challenges the critical consensus on Anton Francesco Doni's ground-breaking vernacular bibliographies, the Libraria of 1550 and the Seconda Libraria of 1551. The former is usually considered a faithful guide to the world of Italian printed books in the first half of the sixteenth century, whilst the latter is generally portrayed as little more than a work of bibliographical fiction. This article demonstrates that the Libraria is actually riddled with inconsistencies, both accidental and deliberate, and that the Seconda Libraria, when examined carefully, can yield valuable information on contemporary manuscripts. Addition and subtraction of material by Doni in later redactions of both texts further complicates attempts to dichotomise the two Librarie. From this analysis, it becomes clear that the two bibliographies must be viewed together as representative of Doni's complex attitude towards the medium of print and its effects on the literary world of his time.
ISSN:0015-8518
1471-6860
DOI:10.1093/fmls/cqn061