Mario Equicola (c. 1470 – 26 July 1525) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

Renaissance humanist: a

Neo-Latin Neo-LatinSidwell, Keith ''Classical Latin-Medieval Latin-Neo Latin'' in ; others, throughout. (also known as New Latin and Modern Latin) is the style of written Latin used in original literary, scholarly, and scientific works, first in Italy d ...

author, a

bibliophile A bookworm or bibliophile is an individual who loves and frequently reads or collects books. Bibliophilia or bibliophilism is the love of books. Bibliophiles may have large, specialized book collections. They may highly value old editions, aut ...

, and a

courtier A courtier () is a person who attends the royal court of a monarch or other royalty. The earliest historical examples of courtiers were part of the retinues of rulers. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the officia ...

Isabella d'Este Isabella d'Este (19 May 1474 – 13 February 1539) was the Marchioness of Mantua and one of the leading women of the Italian Renaissance as a major cultural and political figure. She was a patron of the arts as well as a leader of fashion ...

and Federico II Gonzaga. The

National Gallery of Art The National Gallery of Art is an art museum in Washington, D.C., United States, located on the National Mall, between 3rd and 9th Streets, at Constitution Avenue NW. Open to the public and free of charge, the museum was privately established in ...

describes him as "one of the Renaissance's most admired classical scholars".National Gallery of Art, The Collection
''The Feast of the Gods'' by Bellini and Titian
under "The Alabaster Chamber" heading.

Life

Born at Alvito in or around 1470, Equicola was moved to

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

while still a boy. There he entered the

Accademia Pontaniana The Accademia Pontaniana was the first academy in the modern sense, as a learned society for scholars and humanists and guided by a formal statute. Patronized by Alfonso V of Aragon, it was founded by the poet Antonio Beccadelli in Naples durin ...

as a young man. He later moved on to

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

, where he studied under

Marsilio Ficino Marsilio Ficino (; Latin name: ; 19 October 1433 – 1 October 1499) was an Italian scholar and Catholic priest who was one of the most influential humanist philosophers of the early Italian Renaissance. He was an astrologer, a reviver of Neo ...

and adopted his teacher's

neoplatonism Neoplatonism is a version of Platonic philosophy that emerged in the 3rd century AD against the background of Hellenistic philosophy and religion. The term does not encapsulate a set of ideas as much as a series of thinkers. Among the common id ...

, and then to

Mantua Mantua ( ; ; Lombard language, Lombard and ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Italian region of Lombardy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, eponymous province. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the "Italian Capital of Culture". In 2 ...

, to the court of Isabella and Federico. In 1511 Equicola wrote Isabella that he was continuing a stay in

Ferrara Ferrara (; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Emilia-Romagna, Northern Italy, capital of the province of Ferrara. it had 132,009 inhabitants. It is situated northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main ...

at the court of Duke Alfonso her brother in order to prepare in writing six ''fabule'' (fables) or ''istorie'' (histories) to be painted for the decoration of one of the duke's rooms, the ''camerino d'alabastro'' (alabaster chamber). These paintings, among them '' The Feast of the Gods'' and ''

Bacchus and Ariadne ''Bacchus and Ariadne'' (1520–1523) is an oil painting by Titian. It is one of a cycle of paintings on mythological subjects produced for Alfonso I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara, for the Camerino d'Alabastro – a private room in his palazzo ...

'', were executed by

Giovanni Bellini Giovanni Bellini (; c. 1430 – 29 November 1516) was an Italian Renaissance painter, probably the best known of the Bellini family of Venetian painters. He was raised in the household of Jacopo Bellini, formerly thought to have been his father, ...

and

Titian Tiziano Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), Latinized as Titianus, hence known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italian Renaissance painter, the most important artist of Renaissance Venetian painting. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, near Belluno. Ti ...

. Equicola's sources were extensive, both classical and contemporary; he may have been commissioned to allegorise the marriage of Alfonso and

Lucrezia Borgia Lucrezia Borgia (18 April 1480 – 24 June 1519) was an Italian noblewoman of the House of Borgia who was the illegitimate daughter of Pope Alexander VI and Vannozza dei Cattanei. She was a former governor of Spoleto. Her family arranged ...

in 1501. Equicola expressed an interest in contemporary vernacular poetry. He was one of the first scholars to bring attention to the innovations of the

troubadour A troubadour (, ; ) was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages (1100–1350). Since the word ''troubadour'' is etymologically masculine, a female equivalent is usually called a ''trobairitz''. The tr ...

s and traced the origins of vernacular poetry to them. He also was one of the first scholars to praise women as exceeding men in their excellence in his little treatise ''De mulieribus'' (About Women). In 1517 he accompanied his patroness on a pilgrimage to

Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume (; ) is a commune in the southeastern French department of Var, in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Located east of Aix-en-Provence, the town lies at the foot of the Sainte-Baume mountains. ''Baume'' or ''b ...

, which took them through

Provence Provence is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which stretches from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the France–Italy border, Italian border to the east; it is bordered by the Mediterrane ...

, where he availed himself of the archives of

Aix Aix or AIX may refer to: Computing * AIX, a line of IBM computer operating systems *Alternate index, for an IBM Virtual Storage Access Method key-sequenced data set * Athens Internet Exchange, a European Internet exchange point Places Belg ...

. Equicola's account of the trip survives. According to Equicola, what differentiated the troubadours from the Latin poets of antiquity was their respect for women: ''il modo de descrivere loro amore fu novo diverso de quel de antichi Latini, questi senza respecto, senza reverentia, senza timore de infamare sua donna apertamente scrivevano'', "the mode of describing their he troubadours'love was new and different from that of the ancient Latins, who openly wrote without respect, without reverence, without fear of defaming their lady". In his most famous work, written in Latin between 1494 and 1496, but not published until 1525 at

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

and then in Italian, the ''Libro de natura de amore'', Equicola studied the metaphysics of

love Love is a feeling of strong attraction and emotional attachment (psychology), attachment to a person, animal, or thing. It is expressed in many forms, encompassing a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most su ...

and the nature of poetic

courtly love Courtly love ( ; ) was a medieval European literary conception of love that emphasized nobility and chivalry. Medieval literature is filled with examples of knights setting out on adventures and performing various deeds or services for ladies b ...

.Boase, 9. The poets which Equicola studied for this work, and the different names by which he knew them depending on their language, are indicated by the section he entitled "Como Latini et Greci Poeti, Ioculari Provenzali, Rimanti Francesi, Dicitori Thoscani, & trovatori Spagnoli habiano loro Amante lodato & le passioni di loro stessi descritto". This Aristotelian work received severe criticism for its unscholarly approach and lack of structure, coherence, and purpose, but it was still widely disseminated and widely used, though rarely acknowledged. His views on love were credited as an influence by such figures as

Agostino Nifo Agostino Nifo ( Latinized as Augustinus Niphus; 1538 or 1545) was an Italian philosopher and commentator. Life He was born at Sessa Aurunca near Naples. He proceeded to Padua, where he studied philosophy. He lectured at Padua, Naples, Rome, and P ...

(''De pulchro et amore''),

Giuseppe Betussi Giuseppe is the Italian form of the given name Joseph, from Latin Iōsēphus from Ancient Greek Ἰωσήφ (Iōsḗph), from Hebrew יוסף. The feminine form of the name is Giuseppa or Giuseppina. People with the given name include: :''Note ...

(''Dialogo amoroso''), and

Lope de Vega Félix Lope de Vega y Carpio (; 25 November 156227 August 1635) was a Spanish playwright, poet, and novelist who was a key figure in the Spanish Golden Age (1492–1659) of Spanish Baroque literature, Baroque literature. In the literature of ...

(''El maestro de danzar''), however. According to Nesca A. Robb in ''Neoplatonism of the Italian Renaissance'' (London: Allen and Unwin, 1956), "it was poor Equicola's fate to be shamelessly pillaged by his fellow authors, and in the century after his death to be hounded from

Parnassus Mount Parnassus (; , ''Parnassós'') is a mountain range of central Greece that is, and historically has been, especially valuable to the Greek nation and the earlier Greek city-states for many reasons. In peace, it offers scenic views of the c ...

by the irrepressible Boccalini." Equicola indicated that

Occitan Occitan may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain. * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France. * Occitan language, spoken in parts o ...

and

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

poetry were rare in Italy but

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

poetry widely read, being accessible through several circulating

Neapolitan Neapolitan means of or pertaining to Naples, a city in Italy; or to: Geography and history * Province of Naples, a province in the Campania region of southern Italy that includes the city * Duchy of Naples, in existence during the Early and High ...

chansonnier A chansonnier (, , Galician and , or ''canzoniéro'', ) is a manuscript or printed book which contains a collection of chansons, or polyphonic and monophonic settings of songs, hence literally " song-books"; however, some manuscripts are call ...

s''. He was less than enthusiastic about this. He criticised the Spanish poet

Juan de Mena ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of '' John''. The name is of Hebrew origin and has the meaning "God has been gracious." It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking countries around the world and in the Phili ...

and followed

Juan del Encina Juan del Encina (12 July 1468 – 1529/1530) was a Spanish composer, poet, priest, and playwright, often credited as the joint-father (even "founder" or "patriarch") of Spanish drama, alongside Gil Vicente. His birth name was Juan de Fermoselle. ...

in arguing that rhyme entered Spain from Italy.Boase, 11: "Gioan de Enzina confirma da Italia tal dire esser passato in Hispagna." Around 1505 Equicola penned ''Nec spe nec metu'' ("Neither in hope nor in fear"), a book analysing Isabella's favourite saying. He was an ally of Isabella's during the conflict with her son, Federigo, that erupted in her later years. He died at Mantua before its resolution.

Works

*''Marii Equicoli Olivetani de mulieribus ad D. Margaritam Cantelmam.'' (circa 1501) *''Nec spe nec metu. Dialogus ad Iulianum Medicem'' (Mantua: Francesco Bruschi, 1513) *''Ad inuictissimum principem d. Maximilianum Sforciam ducem Mediolani'' (Rome: Marcello Silber, 1513) *''In conseruatione diuae Osanne Andreasiae Mantuanae oratio ad d. Isabella estensem Mantuae principem'' (Mantua: Francesco Bruschi, 1515) *''De bello Turcis inferendo'' (1519) *''Chronica di Mantua'' (Manuta, 1521) *''Libro de natura de amore di Mario Equicola secretario del illustrissimo S. Federico 2. Gonzaga marchese di Mantua'' (Venice: Lorenzo Lorio da Portes, 1525) *''Institutioni di Mario Equicola al comporre in ogni sorte'di Rima della lingua volgare, con vno eruditissimo Discorso della Pittura, & con molte segrete allegorie circa le Muse & la Poesia'' (Milano: Francesco Minizio Calvo, 1541) *''Dell'Istoria di Mantoua libri cinque. Scritta in commentari da Mario Equicola D'Alueto. Nella quale cominciandosi dall’edificatione di essa citta, brevemente si raccontano le cose piu notabili succedute di tempo in tempo cosi in pace, come in guerra'', (Mantua: Benedetto Osanna, 1607)

Notes

External links

Querelle , Mario Equicola
Querelle.ca is a website devoted to the works of authors contributing to the pro-woman side of the ''querelle des femmes''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Equicola 1470s births 1525 deaths People from the Province of Frosinone Italian Renaissance humanists

Life

Works

Notes

Further reading

External links