MARCELINO da CIVEZZA. — Franciscan, historian of the missions of his Order, b. at Civezza (Imperia) on 29 May 1822; d. at Livorno on 27 March 1906.
Professor of philosophy, theology and sacred eloquence in various convents and in that of Aracoeli. In 1856 he was entrusted with the task of writing the history of the Franciscan missions, to which he devoted about thirty years, publishing the Universal History of the Franciscan Missions (11 vols., Rome-Prato-Florence 1857-95), which, despite the defects of the first volumes, remains the most extensive work on the subject. A missionary review, the first of its kind in Italy, appeared in two series: Cronaca delle missioni francescane, from 1860 to 1866, and Le missioni francescane, from 1860 to 1879. Nor should the valuable Saggio di bibliografia... sanfrancescana (Prato 1879) be forgotten. A most prolific writer, he also founded several reviews, including La Vergine, a Marian periodical begun in 1863. He also devoted himself to studies on Columbus and Dante. Among his works are: Il romano pontificato nella storia d'Italia (3 vols., Florence 1886-87; 2nd ed., Prato 1888); editions of Fr. Johannis de Serravalle... translato ed commentato totius libri Dantis Aldighierii (Prato 1891) and of the Brevigliuquium super libros Sententiarum de Fr. Gherardo da Prato (ibid. 1882); Della vera filosofia e delle dottrine filosofiche del serafico dottore s. Bonaventura (Genoa 1894); Orbis seraphicus de missionibus (II, 1, Quaracchi 1886).