3. From the “Libreria antiquaria di Umberto Saba” to the Rossetti Petrarch Collection

Saba returned to Petrarch, elevated by local historiography to the “tutelary deity” of Italian culture, when he began to promote the sale of manuscripts, incunabula and ancient books to the “A. Hortis” Civic Library.

The manuscripts and printed books sold by the “Umberto Saba” antiquarian bookshop from 1931 to 1951, according to what is attested to by the Libro Cassa della Sez. Petrarchesca Piccolominea, bear the numbers and letters in pencil that the poet bookseller placed on the back covers and flyleaves. Giacomo Braun, director of the Civic Library from 1922 to 1941, purchased from Saba a manuscript of the Trionfi (“Triumphs”), followed by compositions by 14^th century authors. (18) The codex, copied and splendidly illuminated by Felice Feliciano, was bought together with the codex of Petrarch’s De Africa on 15 September 1933 for a total of 1,500 lire. (19) With the purchase of some manuscripts of works by the humanist from Arezzo, the texts of lesser-known authors entered the library, and therefore very few testimonies survived. This is the case of the Leandreide by Giovanni Girolamo Nadal from Veneto, copied together with the Trionfi and the Perdonanze dei luoghi santi, in a 1425 codex sold by Saba on 21^st December 1937 (20). Another minor text composed by Petrarch is attested to in the incunabulum of the commentary on the Psalms by the theologian Ludolph of Saxony (1295-1377). This finely illuminated book contains the Penitential Psalms by Francesco Petrarca, seven prayers inspired by the biblical Psalms of king David of Israel. (23)