384 P I 
for converfation or inftrudftion. As a proof of the fince- 
rity of his reformation, he committed to the flames five 
hooks of elegiac poetry which he had compofed on the 
fubjeft of his amours, together with numerous pieces 
in Tufcan verfe which had been addrefi'ed to his various 
miftrefles. There is perhaps reafon to lament that the 
zeal of a new convert would not be fatisfied without this 
facrifice. It muft, however, be confidered that the fpiritof 
religion at that period exaiiled many facrifices from the 
profefiors of Chriftianity, which the lenient temper of 
thefe times does not call for. An example of this feverity 
is to be met with amongft the works that (till remain of 
Mirandola; at the end of which, in the folio edition 
publifhed by his nephew, we find a learned and entertain¬ 
ing comment, in the Italian language, upon a compofi- 
tion of his friend Girolamo Benivieni, entitled “ Una 
Canzona de Amove fecuiulo la mente et opinionc de Plato¬ 
nic i; A poetical Treatife upon Love, explaining the Doc¬ 
trines of the Platonifts.” The author, Girolamo, in¬ 
forms the reader, in a Ihort preface, that he had deter¬ 
mined to fupprefs this poem and comment out of regard 
to his friend’s charadler and his own; deeming it unbe¬ 
coming a profeflor of Chriftianity, in treating of celeftial 
and divine love, to treat of it as a Platonift, and not as a 
Chriftian ; but that, having lent it to fome of his friends 
for their perufal, an imperfedt and erroneous copy was 
printed, which obliged him, but not till after the death 
of Mirandola, to publilh it corredlly, (an apology which 
has been made on very numerous occafions fince ;) and he 
takes care to allege, in excufe for himfelf, that he has 
apprifed the reader of his plan by the title of the poem, 
and warned him, in all places where Plato’s opinions 
depart from thofe of Chrilt, that the dodlnines of a gentile 
and a heathen are not entitled to the leaft weight com¬ 
pared with the reafonings of the Chriftian theologilis, 
“ and particularly the irrefragable arguments of the ange¬ 
lic dodlor St. Thomas of Aquino.” 
The firft fruit of Mirandola’s devotion to facred litera¬ 
ture was the Heptaplus, or Comment upon the Six Days 
of the Firft Chapter of Genefis, which was written in 
1491. Two years afterwards he publiftied a treatife in 
ten chapters, de Ente et Uno; the objedt of which was to 
reconcile the dodtrines of Plato and Ariftotle, and to de- 
monftrate that the difputes of their refpedlive followers 
originated in a mifconception of the opinions of thefe 
philofophers relative to the Ens and Unurn , at that time 
a fubjedt of mighty ftrife among the learned. This trea¬ 
tife was held in high efteem by both fides. It was the 
laft work of confequence that the author lived to com¬ 
plete; but he had laid the plan of a vaft and comprehen- 
five work, which his early death prevented the execution 
of. This was no lefs than to confound the fever, enemies 
of the Chriftian church, by examining and refuting all 
their errors. In the profecution of this defign, he had 
compofed and nearly perfedted before his death twelve 
books againft Aftrolcgy, the raoft popular fuperftition 
which then infefted the world. In this unfiniftied work, 
Mirandola attacked the aftrologers with fuch erudition 
and keennefs, and fo ably expofed the abfurdity and 
vanity of the whole art of divination, that he provoked 
them to caft his nativity, and to predidt his early death, 
as related under the article Astrology, vol. ii. p. 
3 *, 3 > +• 
This great defign, therefore, as well as many others 
which Mirandola had formed, particularly that of a more 
complete eflay towards reconciling the opinions of Plato 
and Ariftotle, was fruftrated by his death. From the 
time that he left Rome, which was foon after the publi¬ 
cation of the Apologia, Mirandola generally refided either 
at Ferrara or at Florence. The friendfhip of the prince of 
Ferrara and its vicinity to his paternal feat attradfed him 
to the former place; but Florence was the mod agreeable 
to him, on account of the fociety of literary men which it 
afforded, and particularly of Politian, and Lorenzo de 
Medicis, with whom he entertained a dole friendlhip. 
c o. 
Belides thefe two illuftrious men, his.fociety was culti¬ 
vated by other eminent fcholars, among whom was the 
learned and unfortunate Hieronymus Savanarola, and 
Hermolaus Barbarus : Petrus Crinitus, the pupil of 
Politian, mentions him as excelling all his companions 
in the erudition and eloquence of his converfation. The 
fame author lias left us an account of Pico’s laborious ftu- 
dies;for, when Politian had exprefled in his prefence 
high admiration of his great genius and learning, Miran¬ 
dola with Angular modefty anfwered, that he delerved no 
praife but for his affiduous application. His library like- 
wife is celebrated by the fame writer, and is Laid to have 
colt 7000 pieces of gold. His accomplifnments were not 
confined to fubjects of abftrufe literature: in his youth 
he was much attached to mufic, in which he acquired 
fuch Ikill, that fome of his melodies were publicly re¬ 
ceived, and held in great efteem. It might alfo be con¬ 
cluded, from an anecdote related by Petrus Crinitus, that 
he was not unacquainted with phyfic; for, according to 
that author, when Hermolaus Barbarus was feized at 
Rome with a dangerous fever, Mirandola fent him from 
Florence a medicine prepared by himfelf. 
No man ever teftified a more fincere devotion for learn¬ 
ing and philofophy, than Mirandola. He poflefled a very 
large eltate, which he bellowed almoft entirely on works 
of charity, except what was fpent on colledting books, 
and entertaining and providing for literary men. At 
length, however, about three years before his death, he 
made over to his nephew Francifco his principality and 
poffeflions in Mirandola, and obtained a confirmation of 
the grant from Maximilian, the Roman emperor, to whom 
that principality was fubject. He referved to himfelf only 
enough to purchafe a fmall eftate near Ferrara, where he 
fpent the remainder of his life, except when he refided at 
Florence, where he enjoyed the intimacy of feveral illuf¬ 
trious charadters, among whom was Lorenzo de Medici, 
who teftified his affedtion for him by calling him to a 
parting embrace on his death-bed. His high reputation 
caufed him to be thought of for the cardinalate; but it 
does not appear that any fteps were taken to advance him 
to that dignity. At this period he had a raoft enthufi- 
aftic defire to be ufeful; and he had refolved to diftribute 
all his property among the poor, and travel barefooted 
through the worid to preach the golpel. An early death, 
atthe-age of 32, put an end to his projedls. He died of 
a fever at Florence, on November 2d, 1494, on the fame 
day that Charles IX. of France entered that city on his 
famous expedition into Italy. 
With refpedf to the works of this author, fomething 
has already been faid, and little more remains to be ob- 
ferved. The Conclvfiones afford a very complete fpecimen 
of the learning of the age, and of what were deemed the 
molt valuable purpofes to which learning- could be ap¬ 
plied. However ufelefs and unprofitable thefe purpofes 
may appear to us, it will not be denied by any one who 
has the curiofity to look through them, that the mafs of 
learning which mtift have been poflefled by the propofer 
of them, is prodigious ; when it is recollected that, at the 
time he propofed them, he was no more than twenty-three 
years of age. For there is not the leaft reafon to iuppofe, 
that a perfon whofe works prove him to have been a man 
of profound learning, and who, in an age and nation dil- 
tinguiflied by fome of the brighteft fcholars that ever ap¬ 
peared, was ranked by their own judgment a-mongft the 
firft, fliould have challenged the difcuflion of any_c-f the 
propofed fubjedls, without being well provided with the 
knowledgenecefiary for fuch a debate. The manner in 
which thequeftions were propounded leave little room to 
doubt that the author was deeply verfed in the refpedtive 
fubjedls of them : and the Apology for the accufed Pro- 
pofitions, particularly thofe de Salute Origenis and de 
MagiCi atque Cabala, difcover familiarity with the writings 
of the Fathers, as well as with the Greek and Hebrew 
dallies, and a facility of language and argument that 
could not be acquired a: that age without extraordinary 
powers 
