Brunetto Latini was a native of Florence, Italy, a
married man, and the father of three children. He
belonged to a powerful family and enjoyed a long
and distinguished public career that began in 1254.
In 1260, as Manfred of Sicily threatened to invade
Florence, Latini headed a diplomatic mission to
seek help from Alfonso X of Spain. Unfortunately,
Manfred’s army conquered Florence before Latini
returned home, and for the next seven years, he
lived in exile in France. After Manfred died in
1266, Latini returned to his native city, where he
soon resumed his political career.
In addition to his political activities, Latini
worked as a teacher, training his students by having
them copy translations of Pier delle VIGNE’s letters.
The most famous of his students was DANTE
ALIGHIERI, who placed Latini (for reasons now unknown)
among the Sodomites in Canto 15 of his
Inferno.
Latini’s literary works include Italian translations
of works by CICERO; the Favolello, a letter containing
poetry about friendship; and Tesoretto
(Little Treasure), an allegory written in rhyming
couplets. Scholar Julia Bolton Holloway believes
Latini composed Tesoretto for Spain’s King Alfonso.
Partially modeled on the ROMANCE OF THE
ROSE, the poem includes scenes in which Latini
meets Nature, escapes the garden of Love with
OVID’s help, and talks to Ptolemy. It may be the first
Italian poem intended to educate more than to entertain.
Latini’s most popular and enduring work, composed
while he was in exile (1260–66), was The
Book of the Treasure. Europeans of the MIDDLE AGES
placed little value on originality; they viewed authors
who referred to (or even copied) well-known
works as more knowledgeable and authoritative.
Thus, many medieval books are essentially compilations
of earlier writings. Latini’s Book of the Treasure
is just such a compilation. Holloway posits
that Latini intended it to teach Charles of Anjou
the proper way to govern. Other scholars speculate
that the book targeted less-prominent readers
who wished to advance in the world. Latini most
likely intended the work to be used by learned men
as a reference source, for he begins with an appeal
to the wise:
This book is called the Treasure, for just as the
lord who wishes to amass things of great
value . . . puts into his treasure the most precious
jewels he can gather together according
to his intention, in a similar manner the body
of this book is compiled out of wisdom, like
the one which is extracted from all branches of
philosophy in a brief summary.
Latini divides the Treasure into three parts. In
the first part, he discusses “the nature of all things
celestial and terrestrial.” It includes a history of the
world,much of which comes from the BIBLE; information
on astronomy and the elements; and a BESTIARY.
In the second part, he discusses ethics,“what
things one should do and not do,” drawing heavily
on ARISTOTLE’s writings. Finally, in the third section,
he discusses rhetoric and city government—
or, as he says, “knowing and demonstrating why
one should do some things and not others.” In this
section he mentions Cicero’s ideas about rhetoric
and describes his personal experiences as a government
official.
Chapter headings of the Treasure include “The
paths of day and night, and heat, and cold”; “How
one should choose land for cultivation”; “The
cetacean called whale”; “The three manners of
good”; “The five parts of rhetoric”; and “Which
man should be elected to be lord and governor of
the city”.
Adding to the Treasure’s authority, Latini mentions
and uses information from the works of Aristotle;
Cicero; PLATO; SOCRATES; SALLUST; LUCAN;
Palladius; SENECA; VIRGIL; JUVENAL; MARTIAL; HORACE;
AUGUSTINE, SAINT; JEROME, SAINT; BOETHIUS,
and AMBROSE, SAINT.
Translators Paul Barrette and Spurgeon Baldwin
note that the Treasure appeared “in the very
twilight of the life of such compendia,” meaning it
was one of the last of its breed. Nevertheless, it enjoyed
great popularity for being the first compendium
to be written in a vernacular language
(French) rather than in Latin and for its extravagance
of information based on the classics. In their
translation of the work, Barrette and Spurgeon
write, “Another key to [its] special popularity
seems to be associated with Brunetto’s skillfully organized
plan . . . but the most compelling reason
would have to be the venerable and unassailable
authority of Brunetto’s sources.”
English Versions of Works by
Brunetto Latini
Il Tesoretto (The Little Treasure). Translated and edited
by Julia Bolton Holloway.New York: Garland,
1981.
The Book of the Treasure (Li Livres dou Tresor). Translated
by Paul Barrette and Spurgeon Baldwin.New
York: Garland, 1993.
Works about Brunetto Latini
Holloway, Julia Bolton. Brunetto Latini: An Analytic
Bibliography. London: Grant and Cutler, 1986.
———. Twice-Told Tales: Brunetto Latino and Dante
Alighieri. New York: Peter Lang, 1993.