Abstract
The figure of Francesco Colonna is not one of the most engaging in Italian literature nor one of its most distinguished ones. As a ‘period piece’ he is, however, not without interest, inasmuch as he represents a definite aspect of Renaissance letters, betwixt and between humanism on one side and vernacular courtly tradition on the other, with writings like Boccaccio's Amorosa Visione lurking in the background. His ‘magnum opus,’ the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili, is certainly a serious runner up for the title of ‘most boring work in Italian literature,’ and has entirely owed its ‘fortuna’ to its magnificent illustrations. Had it not been for them, the Hypnerotomachia would not be better remembered today than Achillini's Viridario, Cassio da Narni's Morte del Danese or other deservedly forgotten texts. The obscurity surrounding Francesco Colonna has so far been very considerable. A few and uncertain data was all that we had available for his biography and even his authorship of the Hypnerotomachia seemed to be open to doubt. All this is no longer the case now.
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