Fall of the Humanists -- Scholarship permeates Society -- A New Ideal of Life and Manners -- Latinisation of Names -- Classical Periphrases -- Latin Epics on Christian Themes -- Paganism -- The Court of Leo X. -- Honours of the Church given to Scholars -- Ecclesiastical Men of the World -- Mæcenases at Rome -- Papal and Imperial Rome -- Moral Corruption -- Social Refinement -- The Roman Academy -- Pietro Bembo -- His Life at Ferrara -- At Urbino -- Comes to Rome -- Employed by Leo -- Retirement to Padua -- His Dictatorship of Letters -- Jacopo Sadoleto -- A Graver Genius than Bembo -- Paulus Jovius -- Latin Stylist -- His Histories -- Baldassare Castiglione -- Life at Urbino and Rome -- The Courtly Scholar -- His Diplomatic Missions -- Alberto Pio -- Gian Francesco Pico della Mirandola -- The Vicissitudes of his Life -- Jerome Aleander -- Oriental Studies -- The Library of the Vatican -- His Mission to Germany -- Inghirami, Beroaldo, and Acciaiuoli -- The Roman University -- John Lascaris -- Study of Antiquities -- Origin of the 'Corpus Inscriptionum' -- Topographical Studies -- Formation of the Vatican Sculpture Gallery -- Discovery of the Laocoon -- Feeling for Statues in Renaissance Italy -- Venetian Envoys in the Belvedere -- Raphael's Plan for Excavating Ancient Rome -- His Letter to Leo -- Effect of Antiquarian Researches on the Arts -- Intellectual Supremacy of Rome in this Period -- The Fall -- Adrian VI. -- The Sack of Rome -- Valeriano's Description of the Sufferings of Scholars 284 CHAPTER VIII LATIN POETRY Special Causes for the Practice of Latin Versification in Italy -- The Want of an Italian Language -- Multitudes of Poetasters -- Beccadelli -- Alberti's 'Philodoxus' -- Poliziano -- The 'Sylvæ' -- 'Nutricia,' 'Rusticus,' 'Manto,' 'Ambra' -- Minor Poems -- Pontano -- Sannazzaro -- Elegies and Epigrams -- Christian Epics -- Vida's 'Christiad' -- Vida's 'Poetica' -- Fracastoro -- The 'Syphilis' -- _Barocco_ Flatteries -- Bembo -- Immoral Elegies -- Imitations of Ovid and Tibullus -- The 'Benacus' -- Epitaphs -- Navagero -- Epigrams and Eclogues -- Molsa -- Poem on his own Death -- Castiglione -- 'Alcon' and 'Lycidas' -- Verses of Society -- The Apotheosis of the Popes -- Poem on the Ariadne of the Vatican -- Sadoleto's Verses on the Laocoon -- Flaminio -- His Life -- Love of the Country -- Learned Friends -- Scholar-Poets of Lombardy -- Extinction of Learning in Florence -- Decay of Italian Erudition 324 CHAPTER IX CONCLUSION