Every Italian school child knows that “the fathers of the Italian language are Dante Alighieri, Francesco Petrarca, and Giovanni Boccaccio.” Indeed, these are three giants of our literature, so much so that they are probably familiar even to people who have zero interest in poetry and know nothing about medieval Italy.

Last year, we’ve celebrated the 700th anniversary of il Sommo Poeta’s death, but this year is important, too, because 718 years ago, on the 20th of July 1304, Francesco Petrarca was born. His Canzoniere,  also known by the Latin title of Rerum Vulgarium Fragmenta, is considered – along with Dante’s – the highest example of medieval Italian poetry.