Libro d’Uccelli in pictura. A study of manuscript 2 of the Alessandrina University Library of Rome

Abstract

The manuscript 2 of the Alexandrine University Library in Rome, coming from the personal library of the last Duke of Urbino, Francesco Maria II Della Rovere, preserves inside about 300 color plates of birds and real and fantastic animals, all inserted in an extremely refined naturalistic context, in excellent condition. The sixteenth-century binding, richly adorned on the plates and on the back with allegorical and phytomorphic motifs inserted inside a geometric frame. The aim of the research was to reconstruct its history, starting from all those non-textual elements, of which the code is totally devoid, which identify the most properly physical-material aspect. Through the analysis of the paper and the watermark, of the binding and its ornamentation,and finally the opening coat of arms of the codex, it was possible not only to date it precisely but also to identify the workshop of origin and discover the one who orders its manufacture and that is the Bolognese natural scientist Ulisse Aldrovandi. A precious gift for the Duke Francesco Maria II who will become his patron, supporting him economically in the print of his scientific works.

Keywords

• Biblioteca Alessandrina Roma
• Ulisse Aldrovandi
• Francesco Maria II della Rovere
• Manoscritto
• Tavole Animali