Facetiae
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Poggio 's Facetiae, a collection of humorous and indecent tales is his best known work: it is available in several English translations.
In 1450 an outbreak of the pest sent Poggio to his birthplace where he completed the compilation of the "Facetiæ". This is a collection of witty sayings, anecdotes, quidproquos, and insolence, mingled with obscenities and impertinent jesting with religious subjects.
Poggio published his Facetiae in 1451, when he was seventy years old. They were not condemned by the Vatican because they were written in the purest Latin Poggio could command, legible by the clerical class and incomprehensible to the masses.
Its unsparing satires on the monastic orders and the secular clergy is remarkable and reminiscent of Gargantua and Pantagruel by Rabelais who was familiar with the Facetiae.
Gershon Legman's Rationale of the Dirty Joke was dedicated to Poggio.
There is a public domain 1930 edition titled Facetia Erotica.
See also