Aspetti dell'esperienza grafica del Quattrocento italiano attraverso i Manoscritti datati d'Italia

Abstract

In the "Manoscritti datati d'ltalia" series descriptions and plates of 1782 manuscripts have been published so far, and 85% are 15th-century items. Thus the series is of basic importance for the study of late medieval and humanistic scripts, particularly in Italy, where two main traditions (moderna and antiqua), which included a great variety of writing practices, continued side by side during the Quattrocento. These plates are tools for a palaeographical study aiming at classification. Manuscripts in moderna appear to outnumber those in antiqua; 44% of the Italian book production is of Tuscan origin; the peak of production, both in antiqua and in moderna, took place between 1450 and 1480. Among the 'modern' scripts, the textualis appears prevailing. Many foreign scribes are active in Italy: some of them are deeply influenced by Italian writing models.