ABOUT THE NEW EDITION OF THE LETTERS OF NICCOLO MACHIAVELLI

It is fair to say that the publication of Machiavelli's Letters under Francesco Bausi's supervision brings to an end the Edizione Nazionale of this author's works, which started some twenty years ago. In this case we are speaking of a completely new edition, which stands out because of its philological precision, rich commentary, attention to language, and accurate contextualization from both a biographic and historic point of view. At once richer and more precise than any previous edition, this collection comprises 82 letters from Machiavelli and 272 from his correspondents. This leads to a completely new outlook not only on what has hitherto been considered Machiavelli's private and semi-private written correspondence but on its role within his opus too. Taking into account the teachings one can draw from this epistolary collection will hopefully help scholars to avoid those philosophical and political speculations that have characterized some approaches to Machiavelli for several centuries up to the present day.