The Boccaccio of Terziere. Charm and Exemplarity of a Unique Collection

Abstract

The essay aims to illustrate some pieces from the Bononi collection housed at the Terziere Castle in the province of Massa Carrara, focusing particularly on the Boccaccio volumes: much of the Certaldo author's production is present, in volumes of high value mostly from the Renaissance period, but especially The Decameron, attested by numerous copies spanning from the dawn of printing to the twentieth century. It is evident in Bononi's intentions not only the desire to indulge a collector's impulse, but also the willingness to trace the publishing history of one of the major works of our literature, combining precious antiquarian intuition with a healthy historicist spirit.