MARINI, GAETANO. - Priest, epigrapher, archivist, archaeologist, b. at S. Arcangelo di Romagna on 10 Dec. 1740, d. at Paris on 17 May 1815.
Drawn to archaeology, also through the encouragement of illustrious persons, he was appointed in Rome coadjutor, and later prefect of the Archives of the Holy See; Clement XIV had him reorganize the Christian and pagan inscriptions preserved in the Vatican. In 1798, from the French government of the Roman Republic he received the same charge for the Archives and for the direction of the Vatican Library and Museum. Pius VII, in 1800, named him first custodian of the same Library. In 1810 he had to go to Paris, for the arrangement of the Archives of the Holy See, which had been transported to France. After Napoleon's fall, he supervised the restitution of the Archives, as also of the 500 manuscripts and works of art that Pius VI had been forced to cede to Napoleon, by the armistice of Bologna (1796) and the Treaty of Tolentino (1797). M. was to have taken possession of all the material; but because of his age and poor health he could not; the task was carried out by his nephew Marino, in 1815.
In M.'s works, some of which remained in manuscript, one notes profound preparation, erudition and diligence. Mentioned are: Iscrizioni inedite del Museo Clementino, in Giornale de' Letterati, vol. XVI, Pisa 1774; Iscrizioni antiche delle ville e de' palazzi Albani, Rome 1785; Gli Atti e Monumenti dei fratelli Arvali scolpiti già in tavole di marmo ed ora raccolti, decifrati e commentati, 2 vols., ibid. 1795; I papiri diplomatici raccolti ed illustrati dall'abate G. M. primo Custode della Bibl. Vatic. e prefetto degli Archivi secreti della Santa Sede, ibid. 1805. The Inscriptiones christianae latinae et graecae aevi millarii... a Biblioteca Vaticana item a scriniis Sedis Apostolicae, have remained unpublished (codd. Vatt. latt. 9071, 9072, 9073, 9074). The Roman inscriptions were later published by Mai in "Scriptorum veterum nova collectio e Vaticanis Codicibus edita", Rome 1825-38. M.'s manuscripts were collected by De Rossi, who published the complete work, relating to the Iscrizioni dollari (ibid. 1884).