⚠The page exhibits significant ink bleed-through from the reverse side (verso), creating ghost text across much of the white space.

TO THE

MOST SERENE

PRINCE

OF VENICE

ALVISE MOCENIGO Alvise (Alvigi) Mocenigo served as the Doge of Venice from 1570 to 1577.

An ornamental woodcut headpiece featuring a central grotesque mask with horns, surrounded by symmetrical scrolling foliage and floral motifs.

Gioseffo Zarlino of Chioggia.

Zarlino (1517–1590) was a celebrated music theorist and the Choirmaster of St. Mark's Basilica.

Books of Ancient Matters, Book I, Chapter 2.

Historiated woodcut initial "G" depicting a figure in Roman-style military armor standing in a landscape with hills and buildings in the distance.

The ANCIENTS, Most Serene Prince, who possessed only a very imperfect knowledge of God in a certain manner, held this among the other attributes they assigned to Him: that He preserves His creation and bestows benefits upon it. And they held this to be so true that they were of the firm opinion that anyone who brought some good to mortals was performing the very office that belonged to God Himself; and as a benefactor (speaking in their fashion), he became a God to the one he assisted. From this it followed that the inventors of things useful to mankind were reputed to be Gods, and furthermore (as is seen in the writings of Diodorus Siculus A Greek historian of the 1st century BCE known for his monumental universal history.), they were placed among the number of their other Gods. From this arose the proverb among them: Man is a god to man original Greek: "Ἄνθρωπος ἀνθρώπου δαιμόνιον". This proverb they applied not only to private individuals, but even more so to Princes and Emperors, who, with their supreme power and authority, were able to preserve Cities, Peoples, and Kingdoms.