Fulvio Orsini

Fulvio Orsini ( born December 11, 1529 Rome, † in May 1600 ) was an Italian late humanist, antiquarian and librarian. He did fundamental work in the field of iconography of ancient personalities.

Life and achievements

Fulvio Orsini came from the line of the old Roman family Mugnano the Orsini, but had been breached early in his childhood by his father Maerbale Orsini. He was trained in the area of the Farnese family. Well in 1535 he was a canon of the church of S. Giovanni in Laterano, the most important teacher and promoter was Gentile Delfini, Antonio Agustín another teacher. At least since 1554 he belonged to the circle of close advisors Farnese; In 1558 he became secretary and librarian of Cardinal Ranuccio Farnese. Until his death he lived in the palace of the Farnese in Rome, who was one of the political and cultural centers of the city at that time. In 1565 he was curator of the antiquities collection of Cardinal Alessandro Farnese after the death Ranuccio. 1566 and 1568 he inventoried the collections sorted by location. Also in Orsini's privately owned there were antique gems, which passed into the possession of the Farnese family after his death. He also had autographs and manuscripts, some of Julius Pomponius Laetus who went to his death at the Vatican.

In addition to his duties as librarian and curator Orsini was devoted to scientific studies. In 1570 he was his main work imagines et elogia virorum Illustrium et eruditorum ex antiquis lapidibus et nomismatibus expressa cum annotationibus publish. Here he made, inspired by the studies of Achilles Statius, portraits of ancient Greeks and Romans together, whose portraits he took of different image groups including their inscriptions. These included Hermenschäfte, busts, sculptures, gems and coins. To this end, he collected information on the appearance of the people, which he amassed by the ancient authors and published with the images. He was based on the Titus Pomponius Atticus ancient authors and Marcus Terentius Varro. The pictorial templates were for the most part from the possession of the Farnese and his own collection, other Roman collections he referred indirectly through images by Pirro Ligorio. The font Familiae Romanae was published without illustrations, although it was temporarily planned to connect them with pictures of Theodor Galle, which had been created for an ultimately unrealized remake of Imagines et elogia. Here Orisini contributed information into Roman families on the basis of the obtained coins and ordered them alphabetically by name. For the annotation of portraits and symbols he uses literary as well as epigraphic sources. In 1574 he was involved in the reconstruction of the ancient city plan of Rome by Étienne Dupérac.

In addition to the antiquarian iconographic studies Orsini worked also on philological area. He was among other things an illustrated edition of Virgil out just as Caesar's Commentaries and the writings of Cicero; In addition, he dealt with the epigraphy. With all these major publications, he made ​​himself a name in Europe. In 1577 he got a position at the University of Kraków and Vilnius, but he turned down. Even before he got in 1570 the painter El Greco know, which was also employed for a time in the house of Farnese. About Orsini friend Pedro Chacón the painter probably came in contact with the Spaniard Luis de Castilla, who later gave him first jobs in Toledo, and thus the most significant phase ushered in the artist. Orisini himself had seven works by El Greco. 1581 he was appointed by Pope Gregory XIII. to corretore greco the Vatican. Since 1589 he stood after the death of Alessandro Farnese in the service of Cardinal ODOARDO, who was a noted art collector and patron.

Orsini studies were fundamental in many areas and partly by long duration of action. To date, the designation of some ancient portraits are due to the work of Orsini. Its order of the republican Roman coins was valid until it was replaced in the 20th century by a chronological arrangement. His systematization in the Farnese collection made ​​this museum Farnese, one of the central places of study of the antiquarian oriented archeology. Thanks Orisini they also had the character of a scuola publica, a public educational institution.

Writings

  • Inventario delle statue che sono nel Palazzo Farnese. Rome 1566-1568
  • Virgilius collatione scriptorum Graecorum illustratus. Antwerp 1567
  • C. Julii Caesaris commentarii novis emendationibus illustrati. Ex Bibliotheca ... Fulvi Ursini. Rome 1570
  • Imagines et elogia virorum Illustrium et eruditorum ex antiquis lapidibus et nomismatibus expressa cum annotationibus. Lafrery Formeis, Rome 1570
  • Familiae Romanae Qvae Reperivntvr In Antiqvis Nvmismatibvs From Vrbe Condita ad Divi Augusti tenses Ex Bibliotheca Fulvi Vrsini. Rome 1577
  • De legibus et senatus consultis liber. Adiunctis legum antiquarian et Senatus consultor. Fragmentis. Rome 1583 digitized
  • Notae ad Catonem M., M. Varronem, L. Columellam de re rustica. Rome 1587 digitized
  • Illustrium imagines ex antiquis marmoribus nomismatibus et gemmis expressae quae extant Romae, apud maior pars Fulvium Ursinum, editio altera ... Theodorus Gallaeus delinebat. Antwerp 1606
Library Cardinal (Catholicism) Theodoor Galle Toledo, Spain Papal States Eugenio Garin Integrated Authority File
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