«ManzoniOnline»

Abstract

This article describes the structure and functioning of the online portal ManzoniOnline, developed in the context of the national research project PRIN 2015FN4ZSN ManzoniOnline: manuscripts, books, editions, tools. It illustrates the preliminary census operation, the criteria adopted for the description of the resources, and the theoretical problems with which we grappled in the identification of the cataloging criteria.  It also outlines the future areas of research expected in the next three years, in the context of the PRIN 2017CFZFAY ManzoniOnline2: new documents, translations and tradition. This future research will particularly focus on Manzoni’s foreign fortune, and on the history of the philological studies on Manzoni, from the first critical editions in the 19^th century to the present time. Finally, we will make a case for closer collaboration between scholars working on a digital scholarly project, with the goal of defining shared models of description: solving these general methodological problems that would enable scholars to completely focus their attention on the specific issues of the project.