Chosen Passages from the 14th-Century Treatise Summa de exemplis et rerum similitudinibus by Giovanni da San Gimignano: A Possible Source of Inspiration for Eight Emblems from the Cycle Symbolica vitae Christi meditatio (Braniewo: Jerzy Schönfels, 1612) by Tomasz Treter

In 1612, the Jerzy Schonfels’ printing house in Braniewo published Tomasz Treter’s posthumous work titled Symbolica vitae Christi meditatio. This cycle of ascetic and mystical reflections was considered by Janusz Pelc to be one of the most interesting emblem books written in the Polish Commonwealth. Also Tadeusz Chrzanowski, an art historian, referred to Treter’s work as quite a unique work of Polish emblem art. The same researcher quoted the originality of some of the concepts and ingenuity of many icons (lacking direct correlates among contemporary emblem collections). In 2018, Alicja Bielak wrote an article in which she identified the three 16th-century emblem works (i.e. Hadrianus Junius’ Emblemata, Claude Paradin’s Devises heroiques and Aneau Barthelemy’s Picta poesis) as graphic sources of Treter’s cycle. The main goal of this paper is to identify another, non-emblematic source of inspiration for the Polish author, namely the 14th-century encyclopaedia Summa de exemplis et rerum similitudinibus by the Italian Dominican Giovanni da San Gimignano. It is argued here that Treter might have come into contact with Giovanni’s treatise during his first stay in Rome (1569–1584) and transposed it into the language of emblems. The first section of the paper shortly discusses the life and work of the Italian Dominican, with the particular emphasis on his encyclopaedia. The core of the article consists of the comparison of Treter’s eight emblems with selected passages from Summa de exemplis and setting these emblems against the background of the European tradition. The following emblems are discussed in detail: Fides, Conversatio sancta, Spiritualis profectus, Humilitas, Poenitentia, Correctio fraterna, Fortitudo and Mansuetudo. The study concludes with the claim that even though Treter uses symbols rooted in contemporary emblem art, he interprets them in a different way than other creators did. On the other hand, one can observe a striking accordance between Treter’s interpretations and the ones by Giovanni da San Gimignano. Unlike other 16th and 17th century emblematists, the Polish priest provides a religious rather than a moral interpretation.

In 1612, the Jerzy Schonfels’ printing house in Braniewo published Tomasz Treter’s posthumous work titled Symbolica vitae Christi meditatio. This cycle of ascetic and mystical reflections was considered by Janusz Pelc to be one of the most interesting emblem books written in the Polish Commonwealth. Also Tadeusz Chrzanowski, an art historian, referred to Treter’s work as quite a unique work of Polish emblem art. The same researcher quoted the originality of some of the concepts and ingenuity of many icons (lacking direct correlates among contemporary emblem collections). In 2018, Alicja Bielak wrote an article in which she identified the three 16th-century emblem works (i.e. Hadrianus Junius’ Emblemata, Claude Paradin’s Devises heroiques and Aneau Barthelemy’s Picta poesis) as graphic sources of Treter’s cycle. The main goal of this paper is to identify another, non-emblematic source of inspiration for the Polish author, namely the 14th-century encyclopaedia Summa de exemplis et rerum similitudinibus by the Italian Dominican Giovanni da San Gimignano. It is argued here that Treter might have come into contact with Giovanni’s treatise during his first stay in Rome (1569–1584) and transposed it into the language of emblems. The first section of the paper shortly discusses the life and work of the Italian Dominican, with the particular emphasis on his encyclopaedia. The core of the article consists of the comparison of Treter’s eight emblems with selected passages from Summa de exemplis and setting these emblems against the background of the European tradition. The following emblems are discussed in detail: Fides, Conversatio sancta, Spiritualis profectus, Humilitas, Poenitentia, Correctio fraterna, Fortitudo and Mansuetudo. The study concludes with the claim that even though Treter uses symbols rooted in contemporary emblem art, he interprets them in a different way than other creators did. On the other hand, one can observe a striking accordance between Treter’s interpretations and the ones by Giovanni da San Gimignano. Unlike other 16th and 17th century emblematists, the Polish priest provides a religious rather than a moral interpretation.