Maffeo Vegio () (1407–1458) was an Italian poet who wrote in

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

; he is regarded by many as the finest Latin poet of the fifteenth century. Apotheosis of Aeneas Wellcome L0011929

Born near Lodi, he studied at the

University of Pavia The University of Pavia (, UNIPV or ''Università di Pavia''; ) is a university located in Pavia, Lombardy, Italy. There was evidence of teaching as early as 1361, making it one of the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest un ...

, and went on to write some fifty works of both prose and poetry. His greatest reputation came as the writer of brief epics, the most famous of which was his continuation of

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; 15 October 70 BC21 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Rome, ancient Roman poet of the Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Augustan period. He composed three of the most fa ...

's ''

Aeneid The ''Aeneid'' ( ; or ) is a Latin Epic poetry, epic poem that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Troy, Trojan who fled the Trojan War#Sack of Troy, fall of Troy and travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the Ancient Rome ...

'', known variously as the ''Supplementum'' (Supplement) or ''Aeneidos Liber XIII'' (Book 13 of the ''Aeneid''). Completed in 1428, this 600-line poem starts immediately after the end of Virgil's epic, and describes Aeneas's marriage to Lavinia and his eventual deification. Its combination of classical learning and piety made it very popular in its day; it was often included in editions of the ''Aeneid'' in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. An electronic text can be found at th
Latin Library
Vegio also wrote an epic, ''

Astyanax In Greek mythology, Astyanax (; ''Astyánax'', "lord of the city") was the son of Hector, the crown prince of Troy, and of his wife, Princess Andromache of Cilician Thebe."Astyanax". ''Oxford Classical Dictionary''. Oxford, 1949, p. 101 (''s.v. ...

'' (1430), on the death of the son of Hector, prince of Troy, and a four-book epic, ''Vellus Aureum'' (the Golden Fleece) (1431). During 1436–37 he completed his epic on the life of the

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

Saint Anthony, the ''Antoniad''.

Michael C. J. Putnam Michael Courtney Jenkins Putnam (born September 20, 1933) is an American Classicism, classicist specializing in Latin literature, but has also studied literature written in many other languages. Putnam has been particularly influential in his publ ...

edited and translated Vegio's ''Short Epics'' for the I Tatti Renaissance Library (Harvard University Press). Vegio flattered his way into the papal court, and was made

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...

of St. Peter's Basilica in 1443; it was an office he held until his death in 1458. Some of Vegio's poems were later set as motets by renaissance composers – an example being ''Huc me sidereo'', set by Josquin, Jacobus Vaet, Orlando Di Lasso and the first motet of

Adrian Willaert Adrian Willaert ( – 7 December 1562) was a Flemish composer of High Renaissance music. Mainly active in Italy, he was the founder of the Venetian School. He was one of the most representative members of the generation of northern composers ...

's 1559 ''Musica Nova'' collection.

Works

(partial list) ;Poems * ''Poemata et epigrammata'', 1422 * ''Rusticalia'' * ''De morte Astyanactis'', 1430 * ''Velleris aurei libri quattuor'', 1431 ;Religious texts * ''Antoniados sive de vita et laudibus sancti Antonii'', 1436–1437 * ''De perseverantia religionis'' * ''De quattuor hominis novissimis, morte, judicio, inferno et paradiso meditationes'' * ''Vita sancti Bernardi Senensis'' * ''Sanctae Monicae translationis ordo. Item de sanctae Monicae vita et ejus officium proprium'' ;Works about ethics * ''Disceptatio inter solem, terram, et aurum''. * ''Dialogus Veritatis et Philalethis''. * ''Palinurus sive de felicitate et miseria'', 1445. ;Historical works * ''De rebus antiquis memorabilibus Basilicae sancti Petri Romae'', 1455–1457.Charles L. Stinger, ''The Renaissance in Rome'', Indiana University Press, 1985, pp. 179–183. ;Works about law *

References

External links

Maffeo Vegio
Catholic Encyclopedia
Philalethes
From th
Rare Book and Special Collections Division
at the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

(SPC) MSS BH 100 COCH Volume of works by Nicole Oresme, Maffeo Vegio, and Jordanus von Osnabrück at OPenn
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vegio, Maffeo 1407 births 1458 deaths People from the Province of Lodi Italian Renaissance humanists Italian poets Italian male poets 15th-century writers in Latin University of Pavia alumni Italian Roman Catholics Latin-language writers from Italy