AMICO, ANTONINO. - A priest from Messina, canon of the cathedral of Palermo, where he died on 22 Oct. 1641. The year of birth of this celebrated Sicilian scholar, known above all for his researches into the ecclesiastical history of Sicily, whom Filippo IV raised to the office of royal historiographer, is unknown. With indefatigable labor he searched the archives of Naples and Sicily, gathering valuable material for the ecclesiastical and civil history of Sicily, much of which has remained unpublished.
Among his works, almost all written in Latin, we may mention: Trium orientalium latiuorum ordinum... notitiae et tabularium (folio, Palermo 1636), a partial publication, the continuation of which is found in Memorie per servire alla storia letteraria di Sicilia, II, Palermo 1736; Dissertatio historica de antiquo urbis Syracusarum archiepiscopatu (Naples 1640); Series ammiratorum insulae Siciliae... (Palermo 1640); De messanensis prioratus sacrae hospitalis domus militum S. Joannis Hieros. origine (Palermo 1640). Other writings that remained unpublished were published by R. Starrabba (Scritti inediti o rari di A. A. e documenti relativi al medesimo, Palermo 1891), who also edited the Diplomi della cattedrale di Messina raccolti da A. A. (Palermo 1876-90).