ISABELLA'S LIBRARY

21

Calandra, one of the most cultivated among the younger Mantuan scholars, acted as librarian for the Marchesa, and afterwards succeeded his father in the office of Castellan. In 1516, he wrote to her in great concern, saying that while he was ill in bed the lock of the library had been broken open, and several volumes taken out of the shelves, while the others were left in such confusion that it was difficult to open the doors without hurting the books."

In July 1501, Isabella wrote to her agent Trotti : "We wish to have the works of all the best authors to adorn our studio." This same year she was able to enrich her collection with the first of those famous editions of classical authors that were being printed at Venice by Aldo Manuzio.

On the 8th of July 1501, she wrote to Lorenzo to inquire about the Virgil which was the first of the series, and had appeared in April: "Some Virgils printed in a small size, with minute and almost italic type, have lately been brought here for sale, and please me very much. I hear that the works of Petrarch and Ovid are also to be published, and should like to have them both in parchment."

A fortnight later, Lorenzo sent his mistress the following letter in reply:—

"Most illustrious Madonna,-I saw by your last letter that you wished me to send you the three books, i.e. Virgil, Petrarch, and Ovid, in parchment, and so I went at once to the house of Maestro Aldo, who prints these books in a small form and in the finest italic type that you ever saw. It is he who printed the first Greek books, and he is a very dear friend of mine. At present only Virgil is to be 1 Luzio e Renier in Giorn. St. d. Lett., xxxiii. 5.

22

THE ALDINE CLASSICS

had in parchment, so I send it you herewith. herewith. The Petrarch is not yet finished, but they tell me it will be ready in about ten days. As yet they have only printed about fifteen copies on this paper, and have already bound them. This has been owing to the dearth of parchment, as they have great difficulty in obtaining the small amount required for the Virgils as well as for the Petrarchs. But Your Signoria shall have Petrarch, which is not yet bound. M. Aldo has promised me to choose a copy for you leaf by leaf, so that yours shall be the finest of all, and the said Maestro will do this all the more gladly because he has been helped in his work by M. Pietro Bembo, who is most devoted to Your Signoria. He it is who has had these poems printed from a manuscript which Petrarch wrote with his own hand, and which I also have held in my hand. It belongs to a Paduan, and is so precious that they have printed the book letter by letter, after the original, with the greatest possible care. As soon as it is finished I will send it to you, as they wish yours to be the first that appears, and hold this to be of good omen, and feel sure the work will obtain a great success since Your Excellency will have had the first copy. After the Petrarch, Dante will be printed, in the same shape and type, and after Dante, Ovid, which I think they will begin towards the end of September, but the Dante in about twenty days; and I beg you to seek for some goat-skin paper, which should be clear and very white and fine and even, not thick in one place and thin in another, because formerly I have seen beautiful paper in Mantua. The great difficulty is to find good paper for the Dante and Ovid. They will be of the same size as the Petrarch, with the sheet whole. Your

VIRGIL AND PETRARCH

23

Highness may trust me to do my utmost. I mean you to have something as rare and incomparable as Your Most Excellent Highness herself. And nothing in the world pleases me more than to obey your orders, remembering the kindness which you have ever shown me. The Virgil and Petrarch, they say, will cost no less than 3 ducats apiece. Your servant, LORENZO DA PAVIA.”1 Venice, July 26, 1501.

The Marchesa was delighted to think of the honour that Maestro Aldo was about to pay her, and wrote back to say she was eagerly expecting the Virgil, which, however, her servant Franceschino had been unable to bring, and promised to send to Parma for the fine carta pecora, of which there was none in Mantua. True to his word, on the 3rd of August Lorenzo sent his mistress the promised Petrarch, unbound, saying he has no doubt she will prefer to cover it with some precious material and adorn it with silver clasps. But he has lately seen, in the hands of a merchant who has just arrived from Flanders, the finest binding and silver clasps in the world, and has obtained a promise from him that he will take a Virgil and Petrarch with him to Flanders to be bound in the same fashion and return them before Christmas. The Marchesa eagerly accepted the merchant's offer, and her two copies of Petrarch were sent to be bound in Flanders. But, instead of sending them back at Christmas, the Flemish binder kept them till Whitsuntide, and Lorenzo confessed that he was not altogether satisfied with the success of his experiment. "I send Your Excellency

1 Baschet, Alde Manuce; A. F. Didot, Alde Manuce et l'Hellénisme à Venise, p. 170; also A. Luzio in Giorn. St. d. Lett., vol. xxxiii. p. 18, for the correct text.