Education Although born into a poor family in Venice in 1478, Egnazio had learned to read by the age of four. He studied Greek, Latin, grammar and rhetoric at the
chancery school of San Marco under
Benedetto Brugnoli, followed by philosophy and logic at the
school of the Rialto under
Francesco Bragadin. At Brugnoli's suggestion, he began teaching grammar out of his home when he was seventeen years old. In 1501, he delivered an oration at the funeral of the Spanish ambassador, Lorenzo Suárez de la Vega. By 1502, he had joined the
priesthood.
Rivalry with Sabellico Egnazio came to public notice through his rivalry with the much older scholar
Marcantonio Sabellico. This rivalry is noted by both Egnazio's biographer, , and Sabellico's,
Apostolo Zeno. In 1500, Sabellico was promoted to the chair of humanities at San Marco to replace the late
Giorgio Valla. Egnazio hoped to be appointed to Sabellico's vacant lectureship, but was passed over in favour of Giovanni Battista Scita. In 1502, he sought to succeed Brugnoli, whose lectureship remained vacant until 1504, when
Niccolò Leonico received the appointment. Egnazio opened a private school near San Marco. In 1502, Egnazio edited a new edition of
Valerius Maximus'
Dicta et facta for
Aldo Manuzio, a text first edited for publication by Sabellico. That same year, he wrote critical comments about some of Sabellico's interpretations of the classics in a miscellany published by . In 1506, the scholars reconciled. On his deathbed, Sabellico asked Egnazio to edit his unfinished work
De exemplis for publication. Egnazio delivered his funeral oration and published
De exemplis in 1507. By 1508–1509, Egnazio was noted among the learned of Venice by
Luca Pacioli and
Marino Sanudo.
Aldine fellow From about 1508 to 1520, Egnazio held an office (
officina) in the as head of one of its four divisions. As early as 1506, he had been listed as an executor in Aldo Manuzio's will. In 1508, with
Janus Lascaris,
Marco Musuro and
Girolamo Aleandro, he helped prepare
Erasmus'
Adagia for publication in Venice. In 1510, Egnazio delivered the funeral oration for the mercenary captain
Niccolò di Pitigliano on behalf of the republic. In 1511, he was granted full citizenship by the
procurators de ultra and appointment as their notary. He was transferred from the
collegiate church of Santa Marina to the
canonry of San Basio and appointed
prior of the hospital of San Marco by Doge
Leonardo Loredan. Between 1511 and 1513, he suffered from a series of illnesses. In 1513, Aldo published a collection of Greek orations dedicated to Egnazio. In 1515, after Aldo's death, Egnazio readied his last work, an edition of
Lactantius'
Divine Institutes, for publication and wrote a dedication to Aldo. During this period (1508–1515), Egnazio was part of a circle of young Venetians around
Tommaso Giustiniani that were "undergoing in various degrees of intensity a crisis of conscience." Highly intellectual and attracted to the
ascetic life, this group desired to join a monastic community without taking the full vows. Although
Pietro Delfino, the superior general of the
Order of Camaldoli, agreed to their request in 1510, two of the men—Giustiniani and
Vincenzo Querini—opted to take full vows, while the others—Egnazio,
Gasparo Contarini and —abandoned the plan entirely. Nevertheless, Giustiniani and Querini continued for several years to press Egnazio to join them. In 1514, Egnazio served as procurator of the provincial synod convoked by Patriarch . In 1515, he was granted the parish of in
benefice. He appointed a
parish priest and visited the parish on his holidays. In 1515–1516, he was a member of the embassy sent to
Francis I of France in Milan. For a panegyric he wrote to Francis, the king presented him with a gold portrait medallion.
Professor at San Marco After the death of Musuro in 1518, Egnazio applied for the chair in Greek at San Marco. He withdrew his candidacy when it became clear that
Vettore Fausto was the superior lecturer. When the chair in Latin was vacated by the death of
Raffaele Regio in 1520, the students requested Egnazio to succeed him. This was opposed by
Marino Becichemo, who insisted on a debate Egnazio for the position. Although Egnazio's supporters—his former teacher, Bragadin, and former student,
Bernardo Cappello—insisted on the traditional lectures. Doge Loredan agreed to both and in the end Egnazio was elected. The Latin chair initially paid 150
ducats, but in 1524 the salary was raised to 200 ducats with the addition of an afternoon lecture. In 1536–1538, he taught
Matthias Flacius Illyricus, the future
Lutheran controversialist. By the early 1540s, Egnazio was suffering from a facial deformity, but was denied permission to retire. In early 1548,
Pier Paolo Vergerio stayed in his house for a time and gave public readings of his works. Vergerio had been exonerated of Lutheranism in 1546, but Egnazio ordered him to leave when he realized he was not a "good Catholic". Egnazio finally retired in 1549. At the urging of
Bernardo Navagero, the
Venetian Senate agreed to continue paying his salary in retirement, while the
Council of Ten exempted him from taxation. Egnazio died in Venice on 27 June 1553. He was buried in Santa Marina. His eulogy was delivered by Pietro Brichi. By his will, dated 23 October 1546, he left a globe to Nicolò Tiepolop; his collection of Greek books from the Aldine press to the
monastery of San Gregorio and his medallions and other artefacts to the
Bragadini,
Loredani and . His books were ultimately sold to and entered the
Bibliotheca Palatina. ==Works==