Giano Anisio's Lyric Verses in the Context of Neapolitan Humanistic Poetry

The article pays homage to the most prolific Neapolitan Latin poet active between 1490 and 1540, Giano Anisio, born in Domicella near Nola. After a review of studies on Anisio, this article will analyze a hitherto neglected aspect of his work, which distinguishes his Varia poemata from all the other poetic collections of his time, including those of Pontano, Marullo, and Sannazaro. We are referring to the extraordinary formal richness of Anisio's lyric poetry. Anisio not only made use of almost all the strophic systems employed by Catullus and Horace, but increased their repertoire by several new types. An illustration of the varietas offered by the author in this field is followed by a selection of six of his poems with Italian translation.