Details

Subjects:

Charles II, King of Spain, 1661-1700.
Sixtus V, Pope, 1520-1590.
Paul III, Pope, 1468-1549.
Paul V, Pope, 1552-1621.
Gregory XIII, Pope, 1502-1585.
Carafa, Lucretia duchess of Forlì.
Del Bufalo, Ottavio, marquis.
Palombara, Massimiliano, marquis.
Accounting -- Italy -- Papal States -- 16th century.
Nepotism -- Early works to 1800.
Spanish Succession, War of, 1701-1714 -- Early works to 1800.
Nepotism.
Accounting.
Papal States -- Politics and government -- Early works to 1800.
Italy.

Form/Genre:

Codices.
Accounts.
Manuscripts, Italian.
Manuscripts, European.

Language:

Italian and Latin.

Summary:

Collection of 7 documents related to the Papal States. The first work is a laudatory essay, perhaps meant to be used for a public speech, that celebrated the election to the papacy of Benedetto Odescalchi, formerly dean of the College of Cardinals, under the name of Innocent XI. The essay emphasizes the qualities of Odescalchi and his suitability for the papacy, and outlines the importance of his election for the prosperity of the Church. The second document is a summary (referred to as minuta) of a bull issued by Innocent XI, in which he attempted to control nepotism among cardinals. The third document contains a short but detailed account of the revenues of the Holy See during the papacy of Sixtus V. A large part of the cash flow derived from taxation of dioceses, but profits generated by leasing real property were also present. The fourth document is an essay that describes the problem of the overcrowding of the streets of Rome caused by the excessive number of carriages allowed to circulate in the city center and the various attempts to solve it made by various popes, including Paul III, Paul V and Gregory XIII. The proposed course of action was to limit access and parking to any carriage that was not in the city in the service of the Holy See. The document that follows is a letter written by the marquis Massimiliano Palombara to the marquis Ottavio Del Bufalo. Del Bufalo had made an affront to Palombara's son and, in order to maintain the honor of his family and his own, Palombara sent Del Bufalo a formal challenge to a duel, specifying, in an emphatic tone, that he is a man of honor and that he would not tolerate further offense to his name and his family. The sixth document is composed of two parts, the first being a description of a heated argument between two noblewomen, Lucretia Carafa, duchess of Forlì, and the princess of Botero, and the second being a formal challenge to a duel sent by Ettore Capece Minutolo to Contestabil Colonna, both Italian noblemen. While describing the argument between the duchess of Forlì and the princess of Botero, which occurred because of an inappropriate comment of the latter to the former, the author depicts a very flattering portrait of Lucretia Carafa, emphasizing her ancient, noble origins and moral qualities. The princess, however, is presented in a derogatory fashion, as a woman of questionable morals, whose power only comes from recently acquired wealth, and who lacks the finesse that can only derive from an established upper-class family. A similar argument arose between Ettore Capece Minutolo and Contestabil Colonna, as Minutolo, a wealthy youth from a family of recently acquired nobility, insulted the older Colonna, a member of one of the oldest and most important Italian families. A duel was considered to be the only appropriate way to resolve the dispute. Between the paragraphs of the two documents, there are extracts of laws which regulate duels and similar matters. The last document of the manuscript is a copy of the edict, promulgated in 1707 by the Holy Roman Emperor Joseph I, with which he relinquished the Kingdom of Naples to his brother Charles III, in order to support his candidacy to the Spanish Crown during the War of Spanish Succession.

Contents:

1. f.1r-16v: Scrittura facta per l'electione del decano del Sacro Collegio: cardinale degnissimo e meritevole del papato.
2. f.17r-25r: Minuta della bolla, che pensa di fare la Santità di nostro papa pontifex Innocenzio XI per provedere all'indennità della Sede, e Camera Apostolica e che comunica al Sacro Collegio.
3. f.27r-34r: Entrate della Santa Sede apostolica nel pontificato di Sisto V.
4. f.35r-40r: Discorso sopra l'abbuso di fermar le carrozze per la città di Roma.
5. f.41r-43v: Lettera di disfida del marchese Massimiliano Palombara al marchese Ottavio Del Bufalo.
6. f.45r-69v: Discorso sopra le differenze trà la signora Lucretia Carafa, e principessa di Botero, e della disfida mandata al signor Contestabil Colonna dal signor Ettore Capece Minutolo.
7. f.72r-74r: Editto in cui l'imperatore Giuseppe primo fà cessione del regno di Napoli.

Notes:

Ms. codex.
Title from title of first work (f. i recto).
Foliation: Paper, 77; [ii], 1-75, contemporary foliation in ink, modern foliation in pencil, upper right recto. Catchwords, lower right verso.
Script: Written in a cursive script by multiple hands.
Decoration: Sprinkled edges in red.
Watermark: Similar to Briquet, Soleil 13296 (Rome, 1561), but with a Latin cross on top, a small letter F inside the sun and larger F underneath.
Binding: Contemporary parchment, vol. XXIV on spine.
Origin: Written in Italy, probably in the early 18th century (Zacour-Hirsch).

Penn Provenance:

Formerly in the private library of Antonio-Saverio Gentili (stamp, f.1r).

Cited in:

Described in Zacour, Norman P. and Hirsch, Rudolf. Catalogue of Manuscripts in the Libraries of the University of Pennsylvania to 1800 (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1965): Supplement A (5), Library Chronicle 37 (1971), p. 100 (Ms. Lea 584).

Cited as:

UPenn Ms. Codex 1486

Contributor:

Gentili, Antonio-Saverio, 1681-1753, former owner.

Contains:

Joseph I, Holy Roman Emperor, 1678-1711.

OCLC:

319156641