In the Mazzoni Pamphlet Collection one can find “per nozze” pieces beginning with the 18th century and dated as late as the 1930s. Most “per nozze” were privately printed in small runs of under 100 copies, usually at the expense of family or close friends, and distributed as gifts to the wedding guests. An interesting development is that in the twentieth century some enterprising publishers developed “per nozze” publications in a mass-produced commercial format with a generic, fill-in-the-blank “per nozze” dedication. The Mazzoni Pamphlet Collection has at least one example of such a publication.
The subject matter of “per nozze” publications generally remains in the sphere of the humanities and can vary considerably. Furthermore, the content does not necessarily relate to nuptial topics: one pamphlet may offer a translation of a medieval tract on good marital conduct, but another may be a scholarly treatise on the meaning of “divine intellect” in Dante’s Inferno. There are collections of popular Venetian lyrics, family histories, journals of voyages, and poetry in many dialects. One may even find “per nozze” for Guido Mazzoni’s own wedding to Nella Chiarini, and for several of his children’s weddings.
The “per nozze” in the Mazzoni Pamphlets Collection are valuable in many respects: as a group, they offer the cultural historian a rich source of primary materials; as individual pieces, they are not only valuable for their rarity, but also for their richly decorated covers, printer’s devices, or, in some cases, for their bindings. Hundreds are shining examples of Italian printers’ craftmanship, and will be of interest to the historian of printing. The literary historian will also find very rare pamphlets published by well-known poets, writers, and other literati, many of them inscribed. There is the exciting possibility that some of these pieces contain little-known occasional texts by authors such as Giosue` Carducci or Silvio Pellico.
A different kind of publication is the pamphlet that describes a historically significant wedding. These items most often concern noble marriage alliances among families such as the Medici or Gonzagas, and the House of Savoy. The Mazzoni Collection holdings include many of these pieces as well, and most are classified in the electronic, item-level database as “per nozze” items.
Printed materials published in honor of a couple’s silver or gold wedding anniversaries are also marked as “per nozze” items.