Sulla genesi della capitale romana 'rustica'

The aim of this research is to investigate the origins of Roman writing usually called ‘capitale rustica’. According to the hypothesis presented here, this writing is not born for the production of books, but in the context of the writings painted, when in the course of the first century BC the simple brush is replaced by a brush with the tip broad and flat (‘pennellessa’). The formation of this style is related to the political, social and institutional changes after the Social War: in Rome and cities under the Roman law, the painted ‘capitale rustica’ was used in inscriptions aimed at informing citizens (laws, decrees, lists of public officials, campaign posters, notices ...). In the second half of the first century BC this writing is also widespread in the commercial sector. Finally, when the book became a luxury consumer goods produced by commercial workshops, the ‘capitale rustica’ was imitated in the books elegant, using a calamus with a wide tip, similar to the ‘pennellessa’.