Le «Epistulae Magni Turci» di Laudivio Zacchia tra pamphlet ed esercizio di scrittura

This article offers a preliminary study of the compositional features and the print history of the Epistulae Magni Turci, a work by Laudivio Zacchia published in 1473. This work is a collection of Latin letters purportedly sent by Mehmed II the Conqueror to rulers, cities and nations across the world to assert his claims to hegemony, to threaten war and punishment, and to extend offers of friendship. A unique literary experiment, halfway between a pamphlet with political and admonitory aims and a basic letter-writing manual, the text is inspired by the collection of letters by Pseudo-Falarides, a model that is reworked in an originalmanner to adapt it to the character of the ‘Great Turk’. The author writes in a sound Latin prose, interwoven with verbal and thematic references to the works of the Latin classics.