Il De gestis Siculorum di Nicolò Speciale: prime ricognizioni sulla tradizione manoscritta

Abstract

Nicolò Speciale’s De gestis Siculorum sub Friderico rege et suis is one of the most interesting historiographic texts written in Sicily in the decades following the Vespro revolt of 1282. Nevertheless, a critical edition is not yet available (the last edition dates back to 1791). In this article, we provide, first of all, a catalog and a description of the manuscripts; furthermore, we observe some elements, which can be helpful in reconstituting the manuscript filiation. Finally, we reveal the results of the first survey in relation to the author’s identity and provenance, the title of the work, its paratextual organization and the presence or absence of two final chapters, entitled De vita et conversatione regis Friderici and De epistola Henrici eremite ad Robertum regem.