Poggio Bracciolini, Gian Francesco (jän fränchās`kō pôd`jō brät'chōlē`nē), 1380–1459, Italian humanist. A secretary in the Roman curia, he later became chancellor and historiographer of the republic of Florence. A prodigious copyist, he rediscovered many lost classical works, including Lucretius' De rerum natura and Quintilian's Institutio oratorica. His Facetiae (1474), a collection of earthy fables and anticlerical satires, was printed in England by William Caxton in 1484.

Poggio Bracciolini, Gian Francesco

(born Feb. 11, 1380, Terranuova, Tuscany—died Oct. 30, 1459, Florence) Italian humanist and calligrapher. While working as a copyist of manuscripts, Poggio invented the humanist script, which later became the prototype for Roman fonts in printing. He traveled to various monasteries in Europe, uncovering lost, forgotten, or neglected classical Latin manuscripts, including works by Cicero and Lucretius. He also translated works by Lucian, Xenophon, and others into Latin. His own writings include moral dialogues and Facetiae (1438–52), a collection of humorous tales containing satires of his contemporaries.