Research Information System
Archivio Storico Italiano, vol.169, no.2, pp.221-239, 2011 (SCI-Expanded)
The present article attempts to shed light on the relations between Islam, Italy and the ottoman Empire. Seen from the perspective of the hitherto lesser known archival sources on political history, it focuses on the writings of Marcello Marchesi, the imperial councilor to Rudolf II and Angelo Petricca da Sonnino, the apostolic vicar Istanbul during the Thirty Years War. In order to give the reader a contrasting perspective, this article also focuses on the self-perception and on the general world view of the ottomans vis-à-vis Europe in modern era. Within the framework of political history, it not only attempts to highlight certain patterns pertinent to the relations between two civilizations, but also attempts to explore the genealogy of a priori Western notions about the Islamic culture and civilization.