Felice Feliciano (Feliciano Antiquario): Justa Victoria: A 15th-Century Wager Tale

Felice Felciano (1433-1479) was a Veronese epigrapher, writer, and early printing pioneer whose devotion to antiquity earned him the nickname "l'Antiquario." Modern interest in Feliciano has focused primarily on his graphic design innovations in the field of typography; in recent years, however, his literary writings, chiefly sonnets, letters, and retellings of classical and folk tales, have increasingly drawn the attention of scholars. Of particular interest to folklore specialists is this humanistic retelling of the classic "wager tale," in which a womans' chasitity becomes the subject of a high-stakes wager between two men. The present translation, the first into English, is based on the 1871 edition by Giovanni Papanti, which I have collated with Felice's autograph manuscript in Florence, Riccardiana Cod. 1459).

My translation was originally published in Metamorphoses 28.1 (Spring 2020). You may read it here.