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Guido RavennasItalian geographer and historian of the early Middle Ages
Date of Birth: .
Country:  Italy |
Content:
Guido, the Geographer
Guido was an Italian geographer and historian of the early Middle Ages. He authored the "Geography" (Latin: "Geographica"), a geographical encyclopedia in the tradition of Strabo's "Geography" (1st century), Claudius Ptolemy's "Geography" (2nd century), the "Itinerarium Antonini" (3rd century), and the "Cosmographia" by the anonymous author of Ravenna (7th century).
The "Geography": A Compilation of Sources
The "Geography" was a compilation of various sources. Part of it appears to have been copied from a manuscript of the "Cosmographia." Guido also borrowed heavily from the "Cosmographia" in his descriptions of Italy, the borders of Asia, Africa, and Europe. For his account of Italian cities, Guido relied on the writings of G. Julius Hyginus, a Spanish author of the 1st century.
Uncertain Date and Authorship
There is little information about the dates of Guido's life or the writing of the "Geography." Some sources suggest that he lived in the 7th century, making him a contemporary of the Anonymous of Ravenna. Others place him in the 12th century, as a contemporary of the famous Archbishop of Ravenna, Guido (died July 9, 1169), with whom he is often confused (in which case the work itself would have been written around 1119). The earliest surviving manuscript of the "Geography," found in the Codex Bruxellensis (3899-3918), dates to the 13th century, providing no definitive answer to the question of Guido's authorship and the date of composition.
