The Attempt to print Boccalini’s "Comentarii sopra Cornelio Tácito" at the Spanish Court (1643-1652)

Abstract

Because of his sudden death in 1613, Traiano Boccalini left unpublished their Comentarii sopra Cornelio Tacito, a work that took more than half a century to appear in print. During this time, the heirs of the lauretano attempted to publish the intellectual inheritance from his father in the major European courts in exchange for some economic benefit. Thanks to the discovery of several previously unpublished documents, this article reconstructs the arduous and vain attempt to publish the Comentarii by his son, Aurelio Boccalini, under the auspices of the Spanish Court. The reconstruction of this process highlights the strategies that are concocted from the Madrid Court to avoid at all costs the publication of a text that was harshly critical of the Spanish monarchy.