Seniles

''Epistolae familiares'' is the title of a collection of letters of Petrarch which he edited during his lifetime. He originally called the collection ''Epistolarum mearum ad diversos liber'' (''"a book of my letters to different people"'') but this was later shortened to the current title.

Petrarch discovered the text of Cicero's letters in 1345, which gave him the idea to collect his own sets of letters. It wasn't until four or five years later however, that he actually got started. He collected his letter correspondence in two different time periods. They are referred to as ''Epistolae familiares'' and ''Seniles''.

''Epistolae familiares'' (a.k.a. ''Familiar Letters'') was largely collected during his stay in Provence about 1351 to 1353, however was not ultimately completed until 1359 when he was in Milan. Petrarch had this collection of letters copied onto parchment in 1359 by a certain ''ingeniosus homo et amicus'' with another complete copy done in 1364. He added letters in 1366, bringing his first collection of letters to 350. He broke these down and sorted them into 24 volumes. This first collection of letters called ''Epistolae familiares'' were actually written between the years 1325 and 1366 (the first translation into English was done by historian James Harvey Robinson in 1898 in his book ''The First Modern Scholar and Man of Letters'').

In January 1350 Petrarch wrote a lengthy letter to his dear friend ("Socrates" as Petrarch liked to call him) dedicating the collection to him. He requests his friend to keep the letters safely out of sight of the censors and critics.JSTOR:_''On_the_Evolution_of_Petrarch's_Letter_to_Posterity''_by_Ernest_H._Wilkins;_Speculum,_Vol._39,_No._2_(Apr.,_1964),_pp._304-308_
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It has since been discovered that Socrates was the Flemish people">Flemish Benedictine monk and music theory, music theorist Lodewijk Heyligen whose acquaintance Petrarch had made in the circle of Giovanni Colonna (cardinal, 1295-1348), cardinal Giovanni Colonna in Avignon.[http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/mefr_0223-4874_1918_num_37_1_7137" target="_blank" class="mw-redirect" title="Sur le Socrate de Pétrarque. Le musicien flamand Ludovicus sanctus de Beeringhen, Henry Cochin, in: Mélanges d'archéologie et d'histoire, year 1918, Volume 37, Issue 37, pp. 3-32">Sur le Socrate de Pétrarque. Le musicien flamand Ludovicus sanctus de Beeringhen, Henry Cochin, in: Mélanges d'archéologie et d'histoire, year 1918, Volume 37, Issue 37, pp. 3-32
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Seniles

Petrarch begun a second collection of letters in 1361, also known as ''Letters of Old Age''. It contains 128 letters written between 1361 and 1373. It is also broken down and sorted into volumes (18 books). The final letter, the first and only of the 18th book is his incomplete ''Letter to Posterity''. Some English translations of this collection of letters that are out of copyright are availabl

ref name="tanslation">translation into English were done by historian James Harvey Robinson (New York: G.P. Putnam, 1898) in his book ''The First Modern Scholar and Man of Letters''.
complete English translation
is also available in two volumes from Italica Press, translated by Aldo S. Bernardo, formerly Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Italian and Comparative Literature, State University of New York at Binghamton.

Letters of interest

*Letter to Posterity
*Birthday of alpinism, Ascent of Mont Ventoux
*Letter VI.2 to Fra Giovanni Colonna (historian), Giovanni Colonna

Litterae variae

There are many letters that Petrarch lost or did not keep a copy of. Others he destroyed the originals of for fear they would bring much criticism to his larger collection. There is a collection of 59 of these letters by Giuseppe Fracassetti.

Sine nomine

This special set ('' Book Without A Name'') of letters Petrarch was too fond of to let out of his hands of some nineteen letters was kept out of the main body of ''Familiar Letters'' to give respect to the papacy and the controversial lavish lifestyle practiced at Avignon. Liber sine nomine is an epitome of this same work in one ''volume without a title'' (which is 19 letters).

References

English translations

* Francesco Petrarch, ''Letters on Familiar Matters (Rerum familiarium libri),'' translated by Aldo S. Bernardo (New York: Italica Press, 2005)
Volume 1, Books 1-8Volume 2, Books 9-16Volume 3, Books 17-24

* Francesco Petrarch, ''Letters of Old Age (Rerum senilium libri),'' translated by Aldo S. Bernardo, Saul Levin & Reta A. Bernardo (New York: Italica Press, 2005)
Volume 1, Books 1-9Volume 2, Books 10-18

External links

Oxford University reference to ''Prose'', ed. G.Martillotti, P.G.Ricci, E.Carrara, E.Bianchi, Milano-Napoli, 1955
''The Latin Works of Petrarch.''
Examples of Petrarch's letters from ''Epistolae familiares'' in Latin only from Italian institution Biblioteca ItalianaExamples of Petrarch's letters from ''Seniles'' in Latin only from Italian institution Biblioteca Italiana
as titled b


Medieval Sourcebook: Francesco Petrarch: Letters, c 1372Francesco Petrarch - Life Stories, Books, and LinksPetrarch's preface to his Familiar LettersSophiArte on Petrarch's lettersThe Petrarchan Grotto

{{Authority control
Collections of letters
Petrarch
14th-century Latin books