Benegasi y Luján, José Joachin (1707-1770) Vida del Portentoso Negro, San Benito de Palermo, Descripta en Seis Cantos Joco-serios, del reducissimo Metro de Seguidillas, con los Argumentos den Octavas.
Madrid: en la Imprenta de Juan de San Martin, 1750.
First edition, quarto, illustrated with full-page engraved portrait of Saint Benedict bound opposite the first page of text, each page printed with a frame of typographical ornaments throughout; bound in full contemporary limp parchment worn, pages dog-eared at the beginning, occasional spotting, one large stain affecting about four signatures near the end of the text; portrait creased with minor paper reinforcements to verso, 7 3/4 x 5 3/4 in.
This verse biography of Saint Benito of Palermo (1524 [or] 1526-1589), the child of enslaved people of African descent living in Sicily, takes an unusual form. Described in the title as "joco-serios," Saint Benito's life story is presented in the style of Seguidillas, a form of Spanish folk song and dance related to the Flamenco. Benedict's parents were granted freedom for their son before his birth, both had already converted to Catholicism. He joined the Franciscan order at the age of twenty-one and was revered for his piety, strict adherence to the Franciscan rule, strength in the face of racist discrimination, and ability to heal the sick. He was canonized in 1807. In the Catholic church, he is revered as the patron saint of the African American people, alongside Saint Martin de Porres. Because of the longevity of his fame and renown, his previous monikers have mostly outlived their acceptability, he is also referred to as St. Benedict the Moor and Benedict the Black.
