Tomb of Ludovico Ariosto, Renaissance marble tomb in Biblioteca Ariostea, Ferrara, Italy.
The Tomb of Ludovico Ariosto is a marble structure housed in the Biblioteca Ariostea, designed by Giovan Battista Aleotti with elaborate architectural details. The carefully crafted marble work forms a dignified monument to this significant Italian writer.
The tomb was built in 1612 to receive the poet's remains after his earlier burial in a monastery. This relocation to the library demonstrates how his role in Italian literature had grown over time.
The monument carries a Latin epitaph by Battista Guarini on a black marble plaque, and the base records the 1801 transfer in a Latin inscription by librarian Girolamo Baruffaldi. A green drape held by the genii of poetry, painted by Giuseppe Santi, frames the monument.
The tomb is located in the Biblioteca Ariostea in the city center and is easy to find by following signs. Plan time to also explore the manuscripts and collections surrounding the monument.
The monument visitors see today is not the first: Agostino Mosti, once Ariosto's student, paid for a marble tomb with a large statue, completed in 1573 in the new church of San Benedetto, and the poet's remains were moved there on 6 June 1573, the fortieth anniversary of his death. In 1612 Lodovico Ariosti, the poet's great-nephew, had a richer monument built by Aleotti, reusing parts of the earlier one.
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