In the second half of the eighteenth century, archaeological activities in Rome intensified considerably under the pontificate of Pius VI (1775–99), and new excavations in the Roman Campagna and the Latium, together with the erection of the Museo Pio Clementino (1776–84), excited considerable interest in Roman learned and literary circles. A young poet who had moved to Rome from Romagna, Vincenzo Monti (1754–1828), obtained his first great success by celebrating the new discoveries in a memorable poem, La prosopopea di Pericle. In it, a newly found herm of Pericles sings of Pius’s pontificate as a new golden age for the arts. Monti, who was to become Italy’s most authoritative man of letters in the following decades, befriended in those years, and received considerable assistance from, the leading antiquarian of that age, Ennio Quirino Visconti (1751–1818). Their relationship and its legacy provide the subject of this paper, with emphasis on Monti’s early poetry, its significance for the literary history of the neoclassical age, and its role in shaping a novel poetic style intended for the praise of ancient art.

Nella seconda metà del Settecento, sotto il pontificato di Pio VI (1775–99) si assistette a un considerevole incremento della ricerca archeologica, e i nuovi scavi condotti nella Campagna romana e nel Lazio, insieme con l'allestimento del Museo Pio Clementino (1776–84), suscitarono l'interesse delle cerchie romane di antiquari, dotti e letterati. Un giovane poeta giunto a Roma dalla nativa Romagna, Vincenzo Monti (1754–1828), ottenne il suo primo grande successo con una celebre poesia, La prosopopea di Pericle, nella quale un'erma di Pericle appena ritrovata esalta le nuove scoperte e con esse il pontificato di Pio come una nuova età dell'oro per le arti. Monti, destinato a diventare nei decenni successivi l'uomo di lettere più autorevole d'Italia, entrò in quegli anni in contatto il più grande archeologo allora vivente, Ennio Quirino Visconti (1751–1818), dal quale ricevette amicizia e assistenza. Si tocca qui del loro legame durante gli anni romani e oltre, con accenni all'importanza della prima produzione poetica montiana per la storia letteraria dell'età neoclassica e per l'elaborazione di un nuovo stile poetico adibito all'esaltazione dell'arte antica.

Caruso, C. (2017). Archaeological Excavations and Celebratory Poetry in the Rome of Pius VI. PAPERS OF THE BRITISH SCHOOL AT ROME, 85, 241-268 [10.1017/S0068246217000071].

Archaeological Excavations and Celebratory Poetry in the Rome of Pius VI

Caruso, Carlo
2017-01-01

Abstract

In the second half of the eighteenth century, archaeological activities in Rome intensified considerably under the pontificate of Pius VI (1775–99), and new excavations in the Roman Campagna and the Latium, together with the erection of the Museo Pio Clementino (1776–84), excited considerable interest in Roman learned and literary circles. A young poet who had moved to Rome from Romagna, Vincenzo Monti (1754–1828), obtained his first great success by celebrating the new discoveries in a memorable poem, La prosopopea di Pericle. In it, a newly found herm of Pericles sings of Pius’s pontificate as a new golden age for the arts. Monti, who was to become Italy’s most authoritative man of letters in the following decades, befriended in those years, and received considerable assistance from, the leading antiquarian of that age, Ennio Quirino Visconti (1751–1818). Their relationship and its legacy provide the subject of this paper, with emphasis on Monti’s early poetry, its significance for the literary history of the neoclassical age, and its role in shaping a novel poetic style intended for the praise of ancient art.
2017
Caruso, C. (2017). Archaeological Excavations and Celebratory Poetry in the Rome of Pius VI. PAPERS OF THE BRITISH SCHOOL AT ROME, 85, 241-268 [10.1017/S0068246217000071].
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11365/1028897