ALLACCI, Leone.

A very good copy of the first edition of this interesting work on ancient Byzantine architecture. Leo Allatius (1586-1669) was a Greek scholar and keeper of the Vatican library, formerly Orthodox. ‘De templis’ is the result of numerous discussions with Jean Morin, a French priest and former Calvinist, and is in the form of two long letters from Allatius to Morin. ‘The purpose of the letters was to acquaint the reader with the living practice of the East Christian faith in its architectural setting […]. Emphasis throughout his book is on the liturgical usage of the different parts of the Church. […] buildings are not described except in terms of their detailed liturgical function’ (Cutler, p.79). The first letter focuses on the role of monasteries and churches, especially in rural communities. It discusses the structures of Byzantine churches, e.g., the Narthex, Protemplum, the place of the singers, altar, proaulium, pyxis (or ciborium), etc., with copious reference to Greek sources in the original. The second letter focuses on various types of buildings, e.g., trullus, mixtus, of square shape, etc., as well as architectural structures and ‘paraclesia’ (small churches). Interesting details are the use of a sheet of iron instead of bell-ringing, and the ban on bell-ringing in Ottoman territories. ‘Already, then, in the C17 the traces of Byzantine civilization were growing indistinct. […] In the course of his exposition, Allacci comprehends almost the entire course of Greek church building, bringing the account up to his own day when fragments of this tradition still survived’ (Cutler, p.89). Two additional letters are present. The first, by Gaspar de Simeonibus, a papal secretary, concerning the Narthex, an antechamber or porch present in early Christian and Byzantine churches. It describes all the available information on the subject at the time, with extensive descriptions of its ritual uses, e.g., by penitents. The second, by the physician Paolo Zacchia (1584–1659), discusses contemporary beliefs among the Greeks, concerning medical remedies, amulets, demons, and prodigious events (such as human bodies that are incorruptible). An unusual work, and a most interesting encyclopaedia of Byzantine history and architecture.

The closest coat of arms we have traced belonged to the Somma family, with possessions in Naples and other parts of southern Italy throughout the early modern period.