Senigallia, a charming seaside town on the Adriatic coast in the Marche region of Italy, is known for its evocative Renaissance historical center, its fine golden sand beaches, and its many cultural treasures all around.
Last week, a comprehensive program was organized to introduce American collectors from the Grolier Club, to the surroundings of Senigallia. The goal was to showcase the rich cultural heritage and natural beauty of this charming seaside town on the Adriatic coast in the Marche region of Italy.
Our journey began in the evocative Renaissance historical libraries of Cesena and Rimini. These libraries, among the oldest in the Western world, were founded by the two Malatesta brothers, warlords who ruled over independent duchies.
RECOLLECTIONS OF AN EXCURSION TO THE LIBRARIES OF THE MALATESTA CAPITAL CITIES, CESENA AND RIMINI
The first library opened in Rimini, followed by the second in Cesena. Notably, the opening date of the Cesena library, August 15, 1454, is inscribed above its door—predating the completion of the Gutenberg Bible.
Between the moment this door first opened on August 15, 1454, and again on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, for us, we can fully grasp the western civilization of the printed book in its entirety.
The Cesena library remains intact to this day, while the Rimini library was eventually destroyed and replaced by a fish market. Pope Julius II seized its manuscripts as war booty and transported them to the Vatican Library. When we speak of “books” in this context, we refer to illuminated manuscripts.
The Cesena library is an remarkable example that provides insight into the pre-Gutenberg Western world and the advent of the printed book. The library houses 320 chained manuscripts, with graffiti on the walls from early students. No printed books were added to its collections, and within 15 to 20 years, the library likely lost some of its relevance as printed books spread throughout Europe.
The atmosphere in the Cesena library is splendid.
We saw magnificent books: one Tractatus in Evangelium Johannis with an illuminated miniature portrait of Saint Augustine by Thaddeo Crivelli, , circa 1555 (just here), and another with a beautiful Ab Urbe Condita, decas IV of Livy, the first Roman historian whose works begin the documentation of Western civilization. The miniature portrait of Livy, the head on one hand, is by Giovanni d’Antonio, July 1449.
After visiting the Malatesta Library in Cesena, we went to Rimini to see the beautiful cathedral known as the Tempio Malatestiano. We also visited the fish market that now occupies the site of the lost library.
One of the highlights of our visit to Rimini was seeing the Gambalunga Library, a great curiosity and one of the first – if not the first – libraries in Europe created by an individual collector for public use.
The Gambalunga Library, which has remained completely intact, was planned at the end of the 16th century and opened to the public in 1609. Remarkably, it survived the American bombings at the end of World War II.
The library contains some mysterious volumes that captivate the imagination. Above: Pierre Gringore’s Fantaisies de Mere Sote, printed on vellum and illuminated.
In the last room of the library, one also notices—or rather, doesn’t notice if unaware—a door disguised as a trompe-l’œil, with painted bookbindings on the wood.
After these enriching experiences, we made our way to Senigallia. The fine golden sand beaches of Senigallia offered a serene atmosphere and stunning views of the Adriatic Sea, providing the perfect backdrop for relaxation and reflection.
RECOLLECTIONS OF AN EXCURSION TO THE TOWN OF FABRIANO, THE MEDIEVAL FREE CITY OF MASTER PAPERMAKERS
Our journey began with a visit to Luigi Mecella, an independent master papermaker who upholds the tradition of handcrafting paper from rags and various other ingredients. He even builds his own machines to single-handedly run the paper mill.
Master Luigi produces the handmade paper for the Biennale of Senigallia, various exhibitions, and the editions of Atelier 41.
Next, we visited the Paper Museum, where we were greeted by the former director, Signor E. Pellegrini. The museum showcases the three major technological innovations that made Fabriano the most important and prosperous center for papermaking, dating back to the time when Emperor Frederick II settled Arab workers in the suburb of the city along the Ancona road. This suburb was called “Saraceno”.
Since the mid-13th century, three innovations have significantly advanced papermaking:
1. The first innovation involved altering the composition of the paper pulp. This was achieved by utilizing the water power from the old blacksmith mills in Fabriano to drive wooden hammers that shredded old rags, separating the fibers to prepare the paper pulp.
2. The second technological invention was a modification of an ingredient in the paper pulp. Instead of using gluten from cereals, which attracted insects and led to the destruction of paper, a natural glue made from boiled animal bones and skins was used.
3. The third innovation, which became crucial as papermaking spread to other locations, was the invention of the watermark. This allowed the origin of paper from different mills to be identified, enabling the taxation of productions. This watermark dates to 1346. (Museo della carta)
After a delightful gastronomic lunch, Director Pellegrini had a grand surprise for us: access to some of the city’s hidden treasures that are not mentioned in any guidebook. These included magnificently restored rooms adorned with Renaissance frescoes, but more importantly, the national archive housing treasures dating back to when Fabriano was a free and independent city. This was before Pope Julius II lured Fabriano’s captains into a deadly ambush in Rome.
This very old parchment, written in a Carolingian script legible even for a novice, bears a date on its first line in Latin, which translates into English as the year 1011 of the Christian era. It serves as a reminder that for a long time, calendars were not synchronized and varied widely. Each city or kingdom marked dates according to the reign of its prince, king, or queen.
It was not until nearly ten centuries after the birth of Jesus that a sense of anxiety swept across both Western and Eastern Christendom. Was there a risk of an apocalypse? Astronomers were summoned to calculate precisely how many years had passed since the crucifixion or the birth of Jesus, and the year 1000 was awaited with both fervor and anxiety. Once everyone agreed on the year corresponding to 1000 AD, this practice of a unified calendar was maintained. Consequently, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, English, and Danish princes adopted the same calendar.
Thus, no calendar would indicate, for example, that it was the year 685 or 980 after the birth of Jesus; the unified reckoning began after the year 1000. This particular parchment, dated 1011, may be the oldest or certainly one of the oldest surviving examples of our common practice.
After the violent integration of Fabriano into the Papal States, many books were destroyed or placed on the Index of Forbidden Books. However, the people involved in recycling paper were curious enough to look inside the covers of these bindings and managed to save fragments of very old parchments, like the one previously mentioned. This discovery has inspired an exhibition that I hope we can organize for the next Grolier Club Trip in June 2025.
The exhibition will feature 500 intriguing fragments rescued from this massive destruction of books. Notably, among these fragments is a piece of Dante’s Divine Comedy, which was copied or written shortly after the poet’s death.
After these enriching experiences, we headed to Senigallia, where the fine golden sand beaches and stunning Adriatic Sea views provided a serene backdrop for relaxation and reflection.
RECOLLECTIONS OF AN EXCURSION TO THE ESTATES OF THE BROTHERS WHO BUILT THE DUCHY OF URBINO WITH THE AID OF A VISIONARY ARCHITECT
Federico and Ottaviano were two brothers, but Federico was adopted by the Duke of Urbino-Montefeltro, who was also their grandfather, and became the new duke. Ottaviano retained his name, Ottaviano degli Ubaldini, and became Federico’s prime minister. Unlike Federico, Ottaviano did not pursue a military career but was a man of great culture, equally interested in official culture and the occult.
The sources become very sparse when discussing alchemists or sorcerers, but Pietro Bembo regarded Ottaviano as the greatest astrologer of his time. Their friend was the famous Francesco di Giorgio Martini, who built over 130 fortresses for the duke. Among these was a particularly discreet fortress, not marked on maps, lost in the mountains and designed for Ottaviano in the shape of a turtle.
The existence of an alchemist’s house shaped like a turtle poses a persistent challenge to historians and architectural historians. However, when viewed from above, the turtle shape is unmistakable. The turtle is an occult and esoteric symbol, adding to the enigmatic nature of this unique structure. (Illustration from Hypnerotomachia Poliphili, 1499, p133)
This house, known today as the Rocca de Sassocorvaro – The Rock of the Black Bird – was built in 1475 in the shape of a turtle. It was saved during the second renaissance of Urbino by Pope Albani, a native of the area who reigned as Clement XI. He gifted it to his private secretary and personal librarian, Giovanni Cristoforo Battelli, in 1706. The private secretary set up his library in the head of the turtle, adding another layer of historical intrigue to this remarkable building.
The Rocca Ubaldinesca, which defies historians and did not appear on any maps for several centuries, was chosen in 1943 by the directors of major Italian museums as a hiding place to save the greatest artistic treasures of northern Italy.
On the day we visited Sassocorvaro, preparations were underway for a reenactment of this significant chapter in art history: the safeguarding and protection of artworks from bombings during the great wars. For this reason, today the fortress is also called the Ark of art.
The same architect, Francesco di Giorgio Martini, was tasked by Federico da Montefeltro with supervising the embellishment of his Palazzo Ducale in Urbino.
For the envoys from Rome arriving from the north, a majestic façade adorned with numerous windows and balconies without any military protection greeted their eyes. This was a great novelty in the 1460s, as Christendom typically protected itself behind thick walls.
The Grolierites had the opportunity to admire some of the treasures of the National Galleries of the Ducal Palace, such as the Flagellation of Christ by Piero della Francesca…
… and La Muta, the portrait of Federico’s daughter Giovanna by Raphaello.
Giovanna di Montefeltro became the first lady of Senigallia, this beautiful town rebuilt by her father as her dowry to seal the alliance with the powerful della Rovere family. Senigallia attracted many covetous eyes, particularly that of Cesare Borgia, the Duke of Valentinois, who seized it by force and treachery in 1502. Some historians have suggested that La Muta, the mute woman, is a portrait of a woman afflicted by exile and the loss of her city.
SENIGALLIA
On the Saturday, we explored the majestic Rocca Roveresca, a fortress that stands as a testament to the town’s historical significance. We encountered the famous characters of the Renaissance, including the Malatestas, Della Roveres, and Montefeltros.
The day was filled with a conference, an improvised exhibition, and a masked ball.
Access to the videos of the conference : www.youtube.com
The conference room in the Rocca Roveresca is on the second floor.
The director, Alessandra Pacheco, presents the conference by paleography professor Marc Smith to the public.
The at symbol, now an omnipresent icon of electronic communication, is defined by its universal form – @ – and by infinitely varied names across different languages. Its origins, lost in the mists of time, have led to multiple and contradictory explanations, confusing the history of its design, its functions, and its designations. Marc Smith reconstructs for the first time the history of the at symbol, from the Middle Ages to the present day, as both an unusual and exemplary case of the evolution of written signs that accompany the constant changes in societies and technologies.
Access to the videos of the conference : www.youtube.com
Jack Gray and Daniel De Simone present the activities of the Grolier Club.
The masked ball begins at 8 PM.
By clicking on the image, you get a bit of music and dance.
There are a total of 8 videos, Conference, Bal masqué, and visit to the Museo della carta : Playlist GROLIER CLUB GATHERING
Thank you, waiting your next visit in Senigallia