Raimondo Guarini

Who was Raimondo Guarini?

Raimondo Guarini was an Italian archaeologist, epigrapher, poet, college president, and teacher. He was born on May 12, 1765 in Mirabella Eclano, in the province of Avellino, Campania, Italy, the second of three sons born to upper middle class parents-Angelo and Rosaria Guarini. Raimondo and his younger brother Rafaelle entered the Dominican Order, while the third brother, Dominic Antonio, attended medical school. Both Raimondo and Rafaelle, after obtaining their educations, were forced to leave the Order when many of the religious houses in Southern Italy were being closed due to government suppression. Raimondo had risen in the Order to the rank of Abbot. Meanwhile his older brother, with whom he shared his love of archaeology and epigraphy was becoming a well-known and successful medical doctor in Naples.

In Naples, Raimondo continued to pursue his studies, obtaining first a teaching position at the local college and later, in 1829, the presidency of the Accademia Pontaniana. His students were usually the children of the wealthy nobility. Some of his students and friends included Ferdinand I, Ferdinand II, and Maria Christina of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies royal family and other of their children. When not teaching, Raimondo found time for his greatest love. This was his archaeological and epigraphical research both at home and in the field. This research was the fuel for his teaching. The discovery of ancient artifacts often in situ, and the analysis of them was the thrill in his life. Raimondo visited so many sites and walked so many places that his fellow townsmen called him "Il Pedatore"