corinto - Lorenzo de' Medici, young poet

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Lorenzo de' Medici embodied the Humanistic ideal. Not only was he a cunning politician, but also a patron of the arts and a man of letters.

He was 15 years old when he wrote Corinto, a poem in tercets that culminates in the invitation to enjoy youth while still in time, because, he writes, "the flush of youth is a fleeting moment” ("vana cosa è il giovenil fiorire").

The description of the roses grown in his garden (vv. 163-180) becomes a metaphor for the fleeting nature of youth, and is a culmination of lyricism:

Nostro solo è quel poco ch'è presente,
né il passato o il futuro è nostro tempo:
un non è più, e l'altro è ancor niente.

Cogli la rosa, o ninfa, or ch'è il bel tempo!
(vv.181-183)

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A volume in the 24mo format (9x14 cm) of 90 pages typeset by hand in 8 and 10-point Garamond types.
In particular, for the introduction and the final note, Garamond Deberny was used, which was cut on punches by Henri Parmentier in 1914; while for the poem Garamond Stempel was chosen, which was cut under the direction of Rudolf Wolf in 1925.

The bibliography was typeset in 8 pt Garamond Deberny.

Edited and with an introduction by Christian Rivoletti, Professor of Romance Philology at the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg.

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Fifteen-year-old Lorenzo wrote Corinto after falling in love with Lucrezia Donati, two years older than he was. Similarly, the poem is about shepherd Corinto falling for Galatea, a beautiful nymph. First, Corinto tries to impress her by enumerating his riches and acts of valor, but she repulses his amorous overtures; then he urges her to enjoy her youth describing in exquisites verses how ephemeral and transitory is the beauty of the roses grown in his garden.

The volume is housed in a hand-made slipcase and box, custom made to an exact size, whose exteriors are covered with Ingres paper. The book title is letterpress-printed on the slipcase’s spine.

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The original movable types used for the hand-typesetting of this book make it an exceptional endeavor in the contemporary printing scene. 

Neither monotype nor linotype are used. These typesetting systems from a keyboard are often passed off as manual typography. The Tallone Press also does not print from plastic plates derived from digital compositions (photopolimer plates).