Antonio Muscettola, Duke of Spezzano (25 January 1628 — 21 October 1679), was a

Neapolitan Neapolitan means of or pertaining to Naples, a city in Italy; or to: Geography and history * Province of Naples, a province in the Campania region of southern Italy that includes the city * Duchy of Naples, in existence during the Early and Hig ...

nobleman and writer.

Biography

Antonio Muscettola was born in Naples, of a noble family originally from Rome. He graduated in law from the University of Naples. Muscettola was a copious writer of lyrics, tragedies, prose discourses, and didactic verse letters. At the same time he held various public offices in the Kingdom of Naples. His youthful production included the

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

''Armidauro'', the tragicomedy ''La Stella'' (based on a Spanish play), the

librettos A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major litu ...

for music ''Armida'' and ''Radamisto'' and satirical compositions: nothing of this first production survives, especially the satires, which the author himself destroyed. Back in Naples, he took part in the cultural life of the city. He collected the first compositions ready for printing in two volumes, the Poems and the dramatic novel ''La Rosminda'', both printed in Naples in 1659; the lyrics were reissued in Venice in 1661. His most known works are the tragedy ''La Belisa'' (Loano, Gio. Tommaso Rossi, 1664), the ''Prose'' (Piacenza, Gio. Bazacchi 1665) and the

hagiography A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian hagiographies migh ...

''Vita di Santa Barbara vergine e martire.'' The second part of his Poems and the poetry collection ''Il gabinetto delle Muse'', inspired by Marino's ''Galeria'', were printed in 1669 by Zaccaria Conzatti, Venice. On 15 April 1660 he began a correspondence with Angelico Aprosio that lasted until his death. He also corresponded regularly with

Antonio Magliabechi Antonio di Marco Magliabechi (or Magliabecchi; 29 October 1633 - 4 July 1714) was an Italian librarian, scholar and bibliophile. Biography He was born at Florence, the son of a burgher named Marco Magliabechi, and Ginevra Baldorietta. Although ...

and was a friend of

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 ...

Lorenzo Magalotti Lorenzo Magalotti (24 October 1637 – 2 March 1712) was an Italian philosopher, author, diplomat and poet. Magalotti was born in Rome into an aristocratic family, the son of Ottavio Magalotti, Prefect of the Pontifical Mail: his uncle Lorenz ...

and Giuseppe Battista. In 1677 he published under the pseudonym of Costantino Vatelmo the comedy ''Rosaura ovvero l’innamorata scaltra'' (Naples, Antonio Bulifon). His last work, the ''Epistole familiari'', was published in Naples in 1678. Muscettola died in Naples on October 21, 1679. Muscettola managed to imitate both Marino and

Chiabrera Gabriello Chiabrera (; 18 June 155214 October 1638) was an Italian poet, sometimes called the Italian Pindar. Endnote: The best editions of Chiabrera are those of Rome (1718, 3 vols. 8vo); of Venice (1731, 4 vols. 8vo); of Leghorn (1781, 5 vols., ...

, favouring a mild sententiousness founded on antithesis rather than extended metaphor. Many of his lyrics are included in

Benedetto Croce Benedetto Croce (; 25 February 1866 – 20 November 1952) was an Italian idealist philosopher, historian, and politician, who wrote on numerous topics, including philosophy, history, historiography and aesthetics. In most regards, Croce was a lib ...

's influential

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...

of Baroque poetry.

Notes

Bibliography

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Muscettola, Antonio People from Naples 17th-century Neapolitan people 1628 births 1679 deaths 17th-century Italian poets 17th-century Italian male writers Baroque writers Italian Baroque people Marinism