The Arthur of the Italians

The Arthurian legend in medieval and Renaissance Italy is the focus of this new collaborative history.

This is the first comprehensive book on the Arthurian legend in medieval and Renaissance Italy since Edmund Gardner's 1930 The Arthurian Legend in Italian Literature. Arthurian material reached all levels of Italian society, from princely courts with their luxury books and frescoed palaces, to the merchant classes and even popular audiences in the piazza, which enjoyed shorter retellings in verse and prose. Unique assemblages emerge on Italian soil, such as the Compilation of Rustichello da Pisa or the innovative Tavola Ritonda, in versions made for both Tuscany and the Po Valley. Chapters examine the transmission of the French romances across Italy; reworkings in various Italian regional dialects; the textual relations of the prose Tristan; narrative structures employed by Italian writers; later ottava rima poetic versions in the new medium of printed books; the Arthurian-themed art of the Middle Ages and Renaissance; and more. The Arthur of the Italians offers a rich corpus of new criticism by scholars who have brought the Italian Arthurian material back into critical conversation.

Introduction F. Regina Psaki Part One France and Italy 1 Arthuriana in the Italian Regions of Medieval Francophonia Keith Busby 2 French Redactions in Italy: Rustichello da Pisa Fabrizio Cigni 3 From France to Italy: The Tristan Texts Marie-Jose Heijkant 4 The Italian Contribution: La Tavola Ritonda Daniela Delcorno Branca Part Two Arthurian Material in Italian Narrative Forms 5 Narrative Structure in Medieval Italian Arthurian Romance Stefano Mula 6 Arthurian Material in Italian Cantari Maria Bendinelli Predelli 7 Arthur as Renaissance Epic Eleanora Stoppino Part Three Arthur Beyond Romance 8 The Arthurian Presence in Early Italian Lyric Roberta Capelli 9 Arthur in Medieval Italian Short Narrative F. Regina Psaki 10 The Arthurian Tradition in the Three Crowns Christopher Kleinhenz Part Four Arthur Beyond Literature 11 Arthur in Hagiography: The San Galgano Legend Franco Cardini 12 Owners and Readers of Arthurian Books in Italy Gloria Allaire 13 Arthurian Art in Italy Gloria Allaire Reference List: Arthurian Art in Italy Gloria Allaire