BRONZINI, Cristofano.

First edition, second issue, of this controversial work on the dignity and nobility of women. Cristofano Bronzini (c.1580-1640) was advisor to Cardinal Carlo de’ Medici, and renowned for his literary and social skills in Roman ecclesiastical circles. Begun in 1618, ‘Della Dignita’  was his major literary work, never published in its entirety. It was meant to include 4 weeks of 6 days each, for a total of 24 parts. The first ed. of 1622 – immediately entered into the Index of Prohibited Books – included the first three days of week 1; 5 other parts were issued until 1632. A second issue was printed in 1624, with the addition of a letter from the printer and one from the author reassuring the readers that Catholic orthodoxy was being respected. As part of the ‘Querelle des Femmes’ debate, Bronzino’s work presents, in dialogic form, numerous observations on the physical, spiritual, and intellectual characteristics of women, exchanged between gentlewomen and gentlemen in the Medici’s Roman gardens. A major difference to previous such works is his use of sources written by women, e.g., Lucrezia Marinella, to strengthen their literary authority (pp.15-16). Examples are taken from antiquity to the early modern period, and include women of valour (e.g., Lucretia), writers (e.g., Sappho), and political women such as the dedicatee, the Grand Duchess of Tuscany, praised for her prudence, intelligence, and skills. Among the most interesting observations are those on the status of women, and wives, in relation to men, and husbands, with the help of Aristotle’s ‘Politics’. Bronzini decries the ‘tyrannical insolence’ of men who desire to be served by their wives, sisters, and even their mothers, so much so that they behave like masters towards their servants, whilst criticising the theory stating that the essence of womanhood lies in serving one’s husband.