The encomiastic poetry of Margherita Costa in the 17th century Medici court

Abstract

In the 17th century, the so-called lugubrious poetry constituted both a thematic and expressive renewal of the centuries-old Petrarchan tradition. From this moment on, lamenting the death of illustrious figures became one of the fixed themes characteristic of Baroque poetic anthologies. Margherita Costa's Selva di Cipressi is a clear example of this literary style. This poetic collection combines encomiastic poems composed for the death of illustrious personages of the time with other bucolic compositions.  This contribution proposes an analysis not only of the lyrical style that Costa employs in her work, but also examines the socio-political and cultural context of the Medici Court that the Roman poetess wanted to show the 17th century audience.