Merchant Writers

Vittore Branca (1913–2004) was the leading Boccaccio scholar of the twentieth century.Murtha Baca’s translations include several manuscripts of Leonardo da Vinci, An Italian Renaissance Sextet: Six Tales in Historical Context (edited by Lauro Martines) and Pellegrino Artusi’s Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well.

• Translator’s NoteIntroductionPaolo Da Certaldo – Book of Good PracticesGiovanni di Paolo Morelli - MemoirsBonaccorso Pitti - MemoirsDomenico Lenzi the Grain Merchant – Mirror of HumanityDonato Velluti - MemoirsGoro Dati – Secret Book Francesco Datini – Last Will and Testament Lapo Di Giovanni Niccolo De’ Sirigatti – Book of Family AffairsBernardo Machiavelli – MemoirsAppendix - Cesare De Michelis - A Portrait of Vittore Branca

‘The content of these ricordanze is so rich and accessible that they not only can provide an introduction to late medieval history to newcomers but they also continually reveal new insights to readers already familiar with these texts.’- Brian Jeffrey Maxson (Sixteenth Century Journal vol 47:04:2016) ‘The great pleasure of this book is the way the author involves readers in the rich fabric of life in Florence and the activities of the city’s merchants in the world beyond its walls.’- Jeanette M. Fregulia (Renaissance Quarterly vol 70: 01:2017)