POLIZIANO, ANGELO, whose name is perhaps better known under the Latin form of POLITIANUS, was the son of a doctor of civil law, and was b. at Montepulciano iu Tus Cally, July 14, 1454. The family name was Ambroginis, but Poliziano took his from his native town—in Latin, Mons Politianus. He studied Latin at Florence under Cristoforo Landia, Greek under Andronicus of Thessalonica, the Platonic philosophy under Marsilio Ficino, and the Aristotelian under Argyropulos. He also devoted sonic attention to Hebrew. Poliziano's talent for poetry was early developed. When scarcely 15 years of age he took the Florentines with surprise by the publication of his famous Stanze poem of 1400 lines) in honor of Giulio de Medici, who had carried off the palm at a tournament. Lorenzo de Medici took notice of the brilliant lad, and at once placed him in a condition to continue his studies without any pecuniary harassments, by appointing him tutor to his two sons, and subsequently gave him a residence in his charming villa near Fiesole, where Poliziano, who was passionately fond of country life, resumed his studies with fresh ardor. In 1484 he accompanied the Florentine ambassadors to Rome, and was received in a flattering manner by the pope, at whose request he translated (into Latin) the Greek historian Herodiauus, for which he received 200 golden crowns. Ile also made Latin versions of the Enchiridion of Epictetus, the Charmides of Plato, and other works, with such elegance, that Erasmus pronounced him a master in translation. After having filled for some years a chair of Latin literature, he commenced the teaching of Greek. his popularity as a professor was great. Pupils came to study under him from all the great cities of Italy, and even from distant parts of Europe; the principal were Francesco Pucci, Fortiguerra, Maffei de Volaterra, P. Crinitus Guillaume
Grocyn, Thomas Linacre, and Michael Angelo. His copies of Ovid, Statius, Pliny the younger, Quintilian, etc., and other authors, are still preserved in the different libraries of Italy, and are covered with marginal notes. • His copy of the famous Digest of Roman law, with an elaborate philological and grammatical commentary, is still preserved in the Laurentian library at•Florence. In 1489 appeared his Miscellanea, a collection of critical and other observations on the ancient authors. Toward the close of his life he entered into orders, and was made canon of the cathedral of Florence. He died Sept. 24, 1494. Among the brilliant scholars of the classical renaissance, Poliziano occupies a foremost place in virtue of his vigor and originality. His intellect was indeed penetrated by an admiration of the chaste and noble literature of antiquity; but there was nothing servile in his imitations; he reproduced without difficulty—because he was a himself a kindred genius—the strength of Tacitus, the elegance of Livy, and the conciseness of Sallust; his Latin poems, especially his elegies, display the beauty and ardor of his imagination. Among his vernaenlar pieces may be mentioned his Canti Carnascialescbi (Carnival or Merry Ballads), remarkable for their felicity of style, sweetness of pathos, and abundance of imagery. Another proof of his varied poetical power was his Orfeo, one of the earliest dramatic compositions produced in Italy. The'editions of Poliziano's separate writings have been numberless. Sec Seraszi's Vita di A. Politiano; N. A. Bonafous's De A. Politiani Vita et Operib'ms (Paris• 1845), Tiraboschi's Sloria della Litterat. _Banana ; Greswell's Iffernoirs of PoNtiano, and Roscoe's Lives of Lorenzo de Medici and of Leo X.