Domenico Laffi

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Domenico Laffi (* 1636 near Bologna ; † after 1673) was an Italian pilgrim / traveler and travel writer from a village near Bologna.

Life

Laffi, ordained priest, traveled at least three times to Santiago de Compostela (1666, 1670, 1673) and once to Jerusalem . After his pilgrimages to Santiago, he traveled the Iberian Peninsula to Cape Finisterre , Lisbon , Madrid and even Cordoba and Granada .

He described his travels in the books

  • Viaggio in Ponente a San Giacomo di Galitia e Finisterrae (journey west to Santiago de Compostela and Finisterra), Bologna, 1673, revised new edition 1681, further new editions 1726 and 1738
  • Viaggio in Levante al Santo Sepolcro di Nostro Signore Giesù Christo et altri luoghi di Terra Santa (Journey east to the tomb of our Lord Jesus Christ and other places in the Holy Land), Bologna, 1683
  • Dalla tomba alla culla è un lungo passo. Viaggio da Padova ove morse il glorioso S. Antonio a Lisbona ove nacque (The long way from the grave to the cradle. Journey from Padua, where the famous St. Anton died, to Lisbon, where he was born), Bologna, 1691

The first book in particular found widespread circulation in Italy before it was forgotten in the 18th century. Laffi gives very detailed information about the pilgrimage to St. James of the 17th century, about the landscapes visited and their inhabitants, their clothing and customs. He expertly describes buildings and works of art, including some that no longer exist, information about which is only available from Laffi's report.
In 1988 the art historian James Hall discovered the book in the British Library , translated it and reissued it.

literature

  • Emilio Russo:  Laffi, Domenico. In: Mario Caravale (ed.): Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani (DBI). Volume 63:  Labroca-Laterza. Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana, Rome 2004.
  • A Journey to the West by Domenico Laffi, The Diary of a Seventeenth-Century Pilgrim from Bologna to Santiago de Compostela. Translated, with a Commentary by James Hall. Primavera Pers, Leiden / The Netherlands, 1997, ISBN 90-74310-28-1
personal data
SURNAME Laffi, Domenico
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Italian pilgrim / traveler and travel writer
DATE OF BIRTH 1636
PLACE OF BIRTH near Bologna
DATE OF DEATH after 1673