Pietro da Bergamo - Springer Encyclopedia of Renaissance Philosophy

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Pietro da Bergamo

atque conclusionum divi Thomae de Aquino and the Confessione cavata de l’Antonina.

Born: Bergamo Died: 15 October 1482, Piacenza

Alternate Names

Lorenzo Filippo Bacchini Department of German and Romance Languages and Literatures, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA

▶ Pietro da Bergamo; ▶ Pietro d’Almadura; ▶ Petrus de Bergomo; ▶ Petrus Bergomensis; ▶ Petrus de Bergamo; ▶ Pietro Almadura da Bergamo; ▶ Pietro dall’Almadura; ▶ Pietro dalla Maldura

Abstract Biography Pietro dall’Almadura or dalla Maldura, known as Pietro da Bergamo, was born in Bergamo in the early decades of the fifteenth century and was an important Italian Dominican theologian. In his early age, he entered the Dominican convent of St. Stephen, in Bergamo, where he began his philosophical and theological education, which he completed in the Dominican convent of Bologna, where he especially deepened the knowledge of the thoughts and works of Thomas Aquinas. He was a priest and teacher and had illustrious students such as Domenico from Fiandra, Paolo from Soncino, and Girolamo Savonarola. He died on October 15, 1482, in Piacenza. His major work, published for the first time in 1473 in Bologna, is the Tabula, later defined aura: the most comprehensive and widespread Thomistic tabula of its era. He also published the Ethimologiae sive Concordantiae dictorum # Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2016 M. Sgarbi (ed.), Encyclopedia of Renaissance Philosophy, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-02848-4_745-1

Pietro dall’Almadura or dalla Maldura, known as Pietro da Bergamo, was a significant Italian Dominican theologian. He was born in Bergamo in the early decades of the fifteenth century by Baldassarre, but there is no reliable information regarding his exact year of birth. The information concerning his life is few and fragmentary. At an early age, he entered the Dominican convent of St. Stephen, in Bergamo, where he began his philosophical and theological education. Around the middle of the century he was sent to the Dominican convent of Bologna, an important center for the study and dissemination of the Thomistic doctrine, where he perfected his theological training, especially deepening the knowledge of Thomas Aquinas’ thoughts and works. In 1459, the Bishop of Ventimiglia, Giacomo da Savona, ordained him priest. Three years later, in 1462, he

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became a teacher and in 1465 was appointed Master of the Sentences for the years 1466 and 1467. In 1471, Peter obtained his Masters in “sacra theologia” becoming a Lecturer of Theology and until 1477 wielded the post of Bachelor of the Studium. He had illustrious students, including Bartolommeo Comazzi, Vincenzio Bandelli, Domenico da Fiandra, Paolo da Soncino, and Girolamo Savonarola. He died on October 15, 1482, in the Dominican convent of Piacenza. The city of Piacenza erected a tomb for him near the altar of St. Thomas, in the convent church, and in 1485, his remains were moved under the altar of the Dominican church of S. Giovanni in Canale (see Falzone 2007; Mazzucchelli 1753 - 1763; Piana 1963; Ridolfi 1981). All of his published writings deal with the works of Thomas Aquinas. His major work is the Tabula, later called aurea, published for the first time in Bologna by Baldassarre Azzoguidi in 1473. The Tabula is the most complete and widespread Thomistic tabula of its era and offers a list, in alphabetical order, of entries, accompanied by references, in order to facilitate the discovery of the places associated with those entries. Under each lemma (dictio) all propositions (sententiae) which relate to it are grouped, assigning each of them an item number (see Guyot - Sterli 2003; Kaeppeli 1980; Sterli 1995). The editio princeps of the Tabula was quickly followed by two reprints: one in 1478 and another in 1495, both in Basel. A new edition, greatly enlarged and enriched with an Index auctoritatum, was later published in 1497 by Ambrogio Corradi, Peter’s confratello. A new and further enhanced edition appeared in the edition of St. Thomas’s works published by order of Pius V in Rome, in 1571, the so-called editio Piana. The editio Piana has been the basis of all the editions of the Tabula, until the 1880 Paris and 1960 Roman editions (see Guyot - Sterli 2003; Kaeppeli 1980; Sterli 1995). After publishing the Tabula, Peter published in Venice, in 1476, the Ethimologiae sive Concordantiae dictorum atque conclusionum divi Thomae de Aquino, a small volume in which

Pietro da Bergamo

Peter collected and attempted to reconcile 1222 apparently discordant propositions from the works of Thomas Aquinas. He also left a tabula written for the use of confessors, the Confessione cavata de l’Antonina, which contains a list of sins divided according to the commandments, the capital vices, the works of mercy, and the violations of duties (see Falzone 2007; Mazzucchelli 1753 1763; Ridolfi 1981). It appears that Peter also wrote many other secular and religious works, which, however, have never been published and were exclusively used internally in Dominican convents (see Mazzucchelli 1753 - 1763).

Cross-References ▶ Girolamo Savonarola ▶ Paolo Barbo Soncino

References Falzone, P. 2007. “Maldura, Pietro”. In Dizionario biografico degli italiani, vol. 68. Roma, Istituto dell’Enciclopedia Italiana. Guyot, B.G., and T. Sterli, 2003. “La Tabula aurea di fra P. M. da Bergamo O.p. entro la storia del tomismo”. In Angelicum, LXXX Rome: Pontificia Universitá San Tommaso d’Aquino. Kaeppeli, T. 1980. Scriptores ordinis praedicatorum medii aevi, III. Romae, Istituto Storico Domenicano. Kennedy, D. 1911. “Peter of Bergamo”. In The Catholic encyclopedia. New York, New Advent. Mazzuchelli, G. M. 1753–1763. Gli scrittori d’Italia, cioè notizie storiche e critiche intorno alle vite, e agli scritti dei letterati italiani, 941–942. Brescia, Bossini. Piana, C. 1963. Ricerche su le Università di Bologna e di Parma nel secolo XV. Grottaferrata, Quaracchi. Quétif, J. Échard, J. 1719. Scriptores Ordinis praedicatorum recensiti natis historicis et criticis illustrate auctoribus Jacobo Quetif et Jacobo Echard. Parisiis Ballard et Simart. Ridolfi, R. 1981. Vita di G. Savonarola. Firenze Sansoni. Sterli, T. 1995. P. da Bergamo e la sua Tabula aurea. In Fabula in Tabula: una storia degli indici dal manoscritto al testo elettronico. Atti del Convegno di studio, Certosa del Galluzzo 1994, A cura di C. Leonardi, M. Morelli, and F. Santi. Spoleto [s.n.].