The Accademia dei Gelati (Academy of the Frozen) was a learned society of intellectuals, mainly noblemen, that significantly influenced the cultural and political life of Baroque Bologna. It is considered one of the most important 17th-century Italian academies.

History

The Accademia dei Gelati was founded in Bologna in 1588 by a group of young gentlemen associated with the university led by Melchiorre Zoppio. Its members gathered at Zoppio's house, in a marvelous room with a theater and a rich library. Zoppio was one of the Academy's keenest members, adopting the name Caliginoso within it and leaving it a room for its meetings in his will. The name of the Academy refers to the academicians belief that their literary conversations would "enflame" their "frozen" intellects. The subjects of the first meetings were love poetry and the Neoplatonic philosophy of love. Later, the Academy developed a great interest in

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

. Following Plato's philosophical gatherings, the academicians discussed the most subtle philosophical issues after a friendly dinner. They called these meetings "Cene de' saggi" (dinners of wise men). Influenced by the example of Bologna’s senior poet, Cesare Rinaldi, the Gelati quickly published two verse

anthologies In book publishing Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed work ...

, ''Ricreazioni amorose'' (1590) and ''Rime'' (1597), which were early landmarks in the transition from Petrarchism to

Conceptismo ''Conceptismo'' (literally, conceptism) is a literary movement of the Baroque period in the Spanish literature. It began in the late 16th century and lasted through the 17th century, also the period of the Spanish Golden Age. ''Conceptismo'' is ch ...

. Their verse is characterized by extended metaphors which went well beyond the orthodox Petrarchist canon. As has recently been recognized, the poets of the Gelati, and Rinaldi especially, played an important role in transforming the late lyric style of Torquato Tasso into the highly sensuous and conspicuously ingenious poetry for which Marino is famous, and it was in Bologna that Marino first encountered many of the imaginative techniques that he so brilliantly developed in his own poetry. Subsequently, led by

Claudio Achillini Claudio Achillini (''Latin'' Claudius Achillinus; 18 September 1574 – 1 October 1640) was an Italian philosopher, theologian, mathematician, poet, and jurist. He is a major figure in the history of Italian Baroque poetry. Biography Born in B ...

and Ridolfo Campeggi, the Gelati championed the poetry of Giambattista Marino. Their own later production included much religious verse and tended to the moderate Baroque style typified by another academician,

Girolamo Preti Girolamo Preti (1582 — 6 April 1626) was an Italian Baroque poet. He is considered one of the most accomplished of early 17th-century poets. Biography Born in Bologna in 1582, he was destined for a legal career, but broke off his studies to d ...

. They published biographies of their leading members as ''Memorie imprese, e ritratti de' Signori Accademici Gelati'' (1670), and were also involved as theorists in the development of

Bolognese Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nati ...

Baroque painting Baroque painting is the painting associated with the Baroque cultural movement. The movement is often identified with Absolutism, the Counter Reformation and Catholic Revival,Agostino Carracci Agostino Carracci (or Caracci) (16 August 1557 – 22 March 1602) was an Italian painter, printmaker, tapestry designer, and art teacher. He was, together with his brother, Annibale Carracci, and cousin, Ludovico Carracci, one of the founders of ...

's funeral in Bologna, it was Lucio Faberio, a member of the Academy, who delivered the funeral oration. The laws of the Accademia dei Gelati were published for the first time in 1670.

Members

Giovanni Battista Agucchi Giovanni Battista Agucchi (20 November 15701 January 1632) was an Italian churchman, Papal diplomat and writer on art theory. He was the nephew and brother of cardinals, and might have been one himself if he had lived longer. He served as secreta ...

Francesco Albergati Capacelli Francesco Albergati Capacelli (19 April 1728 – 16 March 1804) was an Italian writer and playwright. Albergati was born in Bologna, where he was a marquess and senator and an important administrator. He led a stormy personal life and was ...

Filippo Argelati Filippo Argelati (December 1685 – 25 January 1755) was an Italian historian and prolific editor, notable as a leading scholar of his age. Biography Filippo Argelati was born at Bologna, where his early studies were superintended by Bonaventu ...

Camillo Baldi Camillo Baldi (1550 – 24 March 1637), also known as Camillus Baldus and Camillo Baldo, was an Italian philosopher. Life He was born into a family of minor Bolognese nobility. In 1572 he graduated in Philosophy and Medicine (what would now ...

* Francesco Balducci * Andrea Barbazza (''Il Ritroso'') * Francesco Barberini (''Il Rinvigorito'') *

Giuseppe Battista Giuseppe Battista (; 11 February 1610 – 6 March 1675) was a prolific Italian marinist poet and writer. Biography Giuseppe Battista was born in Grottaglie, between Brindisi and Taranto. When very young he lost his parents; but he was able to ...

(''L'Assiderato'') *

Nicolò Beregan Count Nicolò Beregan (also ''Berengani'' and ''Bergani''; 1627-1713) was an Italian nobleman, lawyer and amateur opera librettist. His ''Giustino'' was first set to music in 1683 by composer Giovanni Legrenzi for '' Il Giustino'', and later reused ...

* Pietro Antonio Bernardoni * Giovanni Francesco Bonomi (''L'Affaticato'') * Giovanni Cinelli Calvoli * Ridolfo Campeggi (''Il Rugginoso'') * Alberto Caprara (''Il Sincero'') * Ferdinando Cospi (''Il Fedele'') *

Lorenzo Crasso Lorenzo Crasso (Naples, 1623-1691) was an Italian author and poet of the Baroque period. Biography Lorenzo Crasso, Barone di Pianura, was a Neapolitan, a Doctor of Law, doctor of laws, and an active lawyer. He was a man of wealth, and possessed ...

(''Il Costante'') * Girolamo Desideri (''L'Indifferente'') * Paolo Gagliardi * Berlinghiero Gessi (''Il Sollecito'') * Giovanbattista Gornia (''Il Rinforzato'') *

Girolamo Graziani Girolamo Graziani (; 1 October 1604 – 12 September 1675), was an Italian poet and diplomat. Graziani was one of the most famous poets of the 17th century, but his fame didn't survive him. During his life he was appreciated mainly for his epic p ...

(''L'Impedito'') * Giovanni Battista Guarini *

Carlo Alessandro Guidi Carlo Alessandro Guidi (14 June 1650 – 12 June 1712), Italian lyric poet, was born at Pavia. Biography As chief founder of the well-known Roman Academy of the Arcadians, he had a considerable share in the reform of Italian poetry, which ...

Alfonso Litta Alfonso Michele Litta (19 September 1608 – 28 August 1679) was an Italian nobleman who was a Cardinal and Archbishop of Milan from 1652 to 1679. Early life Alfonso Litta was born in Milan on 19 September 1608, the second child of Marquess Pomp ...

(''L'Imperturbabile'') * Carlo Cesare Malvasia (''L'Ascoso'') *

Cornelio Malvasia Cornelio Malvasia, '' Marquis di Bismantova'' (1603 - 1664) was an Italian aristocrat, patron of astronomy and military leader. Early life Malvasia was born in 1603 to an aristocratic family of Bologna and was the cousin of Carlo Cesare Malvasi ...

(''Il Difeso'') *

Virgilio Malvezzi Virgilio Malvezzi, Marchese ( Marquis) di Castel Guelfo (; 8 September 1595 – 11 August 1654) was an Italian historian, essayist, soldier and diplomat. Born in Bologna, he became court historian to Philip IV of Spain. His work was hugely influent ...

(''L'Esposto'') *

Eustachio Manfredi Eustachio Manfredi (20 September 1674 – 15 February 1739) was an Italian mathematician, astronomer and poet. Biography Eustachio Manfredi was born in Bologna on 20 September 1674. He attended Jesuit school, then studied at the University of ...

Carlo Antonio Manzini Conte Carlo Antonio Manzini (1599–1677/1678) was an Italian astronomer and mathematician. (His last name is sometimes given as Mangini or Mansini). Biography A member of the Bolognese nobility, he was a member of the Accademia dei Gelati ...

(''L'Errante'') *

Luigi Manzini Luigi Manzini (1805–1866) was an Italian painter of the Neoclassicism, Neoclassic and Romantic art, Romantic periods, active mainly in and around his native Modena. Biography He painted portraits, sacred subjects, and scenic designs. He studied ...

Ferdinando Marescalchi Ferdinando, comte Marescalchi (26 February 1754, Bologna - 22 June 1816, Milan) was an Italian diplomat and politician. Life The Republics of Italy He was from an old noble family which had originated in Vicenza. He studied law at the University ...

* Anton Felice Marsili (''L'Instabile'') *

Ovidio Montalbani Ovidio Montalbani (1601 – 1671) was an Italian mathematician. He was a professor of logic, mathematics, astronomy, and medicine at the University of Bologna. Life He was a politically involved citizen of the city of Bologna, where he held s ...

(''L'Innestato'') * Geminiano Montanari (''L'Elevatoso'') *

Antonio Muscettola Antonio Muscettola, Duke of Spezzano (25 January 1628 — 21 October 1679), was a Neapolitan nobleman and writer. Biography Antonio Muscettola was born in Naples, of a noble family originally from Rome. He graduated in law from the Universit ...

(''Lo 'nfecondo'') * Pio Enea II Obizzi (''Il Regenerato'') * Matteo Peregrini * Francesco Pona (''L'Incurvato'') *

(''L'Essercitato'') * Giambattista Roberti *

Antonio Maria Salvini Anton Maria Salvini (1653–1729) was an Italian naturalist and classicist who lived in Tuscany. An accomplished linguist, he is noted for his translations of texts in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. Biography Born in Florence, at the age of 12, h ...

Johann Ludwig Schönleben Johann Ludwig Schönleben (November 16, 1618 – October 15, 1681; sl, Janez Ludvik, la, Joannis Ludovici) was a Carniolan priest, rhetorician, and historian. Life and work Schönleben was born in Ljubljana, the son of the politician Ludwig ...

(''Il Ritirato'') *

Fulvio Testi Fulvio Testi (August 1593 in Ferrara – 28 August 1646 in Modena) was an Italian diplomat and poet who is recognised as one of the main exponents of 17th-century Italian Baroque literature. He worked in the service of the d'Este dukes in Modena, f ...

Carlo Emmanuele Vizzani Carlo Emmanuele Vizzani (161729 October 1661) was an Italian classical scholar, translator, and canonist. Biography Carlo Emmanuele Vizzani was born in Bologna in 1617. He obtained his doctorate in philosophy and jurisprudence from the Universi ...

* Melchiorre Zoppio (''Il Caliginoso'')

Notes

Bibliography

* * * * Gurreri, Clizia, ''Dentro l'Accademia dei Gelati. Simboli, imprese ed emblemi a Palazzo Zoppio'', in B. Alfonzetti, G. Baldassarri e F. Tomasi (a cura di), ''I cantieri dell'italianistica. Ricerca, didattica e organizzazione agli inizi del XXI secolo'', Atti del XVII congresso dell'ADI – Associazione degli Italianisti (Roma Sapienza, 18-21 settembre 2013), Roma, Adi editore, 2014, pp. 1-6 (). * * {{Authority control Bologna Learned societies of Italy 16th-century establishments in Italy