[7][1] Ecerinis is not only significant for its historical information, but is modeled after the Senecan tragedy and is an indication of the early revival of classical works and their form – a characteristic of the humanist movement.
[12] Much of the information on Mussato's life is chronicled in his autobiographical poem written in 1317: De Celebratione Suae Diei Nativitatis Fienda Vel Non (Whether His Birthday Ought to Be Celebrated or Not).
[11] Nevertheless, due to his recognition, Mussato was knighted and became a member of the Consiglio Maggiore of Padua and was nominated to become a miles pro commune in 1296, at the young age of 35.
[20] During Mussato's mission to Pope Boniface VIII the previous abbot of Santa Giustina, Renaldo, died resulting in a disputed election for the ecclesiastical position.
[23] However the Paduans were upset with these conditions and fearful of the favour given to Cangrande della Scala of Verona during these meetings, whom they saw as being the next Ezzelino III da Romano.
[32] Mussato was also involved in numerous other diplomatic missions during his time in government as well as a part of multiple delegations for the city of Padua including the coronation of Henry VIII in Milan in 1312.
[32] More than half a century after Ezzelino da Romano's reign ended, Mussato and other peers associated with pre-humanism still feared the threat of another potential tyrant in Cangrande della Scala and attempted to save the communal government of Padua.
[35] Mussato repeatedly equated the attempts of his fellow citizens to uphold their "res publica"(republic) in defense of liberty of their community against the challenge the della Scala family presented.
The most famous of Mussato's works contained writings of immense political magnitude that targeted Cangrande and angered the della Scala family.
This garners the following response from the Chorus: This statement clearly uses his death to vilify Ezzelino and warn citizens of Padua to avoid letting tyranny return with Cangrande.
[43] The play used many real life experiences to point to the dangerous effects of seigniorial rule on a city and foreshadowed the collapse of civic liberty in Padua.
[45] Ecerinis created a political legacy for Mussato that greatly benefited the longevity and importance of his works but also led to the undoing of his personal life.
[44] Petrarch is popularly defined as the first humanist, however, figures such as Albertino Mussato, and his teacher Lovato Lovati are argued by many scholars to have preceded Petrarchan humanism in their use of classical works.
[47] The interest in classical works by the Northern Italians, is argued by Nicholas Mann to originate in the study of Roman Law, the Corpus Juris Civilis.
[48] The main interests of early humanists, such as Lovati and Mussato, did not lie in advocating for an emulation of historical Greece or Rome, but in the mythical worlds of Gods and heroes of classical Latin poetry.
[50] Overall, Lovati and Mussato contribute to features of later humanism, such as: the rejection of contemporary Latin, the appetite for classical texts, and the desire to both ascertain their meaning and imitate them.
[56] Ecerinis did not feature mythological characters, like Seneca's did, but dramatized historical events in Northern Italy and was based on the tyrannical career of Ezellino III de Romano.
[58] Carolingian and 12th century "renaissances" did not do much to revive Roman dramatists, and Petrarchan humanists were overly concerned with advocating for classical works while not undermining Christianity.
Medieval universities focused on the metrical and rhetorical features of writing, and this allowed early humanists, like Mussato, to recognize and emulate the verbal patterns of ancient poets.
[61] As well as letters, emulation of classical authors and style also influenced Mussato in historical writing, as he acted as chronicler in works such as Historia Augusta which described events such as Henry IV's invasion of Brescia.
He writes about how earlier humanists such as Mussato and Lovati (among others) relied on classic Roman works and drew on them for inspiration but they "showed little interest in investigating the nature of the society that produced them.
"[70] The works of Mussato and his contemporaries serve as a springboard for the later humanist movement where writers took a further step and tried to recreate the past of ancient Rome through fervent imitation.
Mussato received the poet laurel on December 5, 1315[72] as a result of his influential tragedy Ecerinis and his work on the chronicle of Henry VII's Italian expedition titled Historia Augusta (or De gestis Henrici septimi Cesaris).
[77] Just as Seneca's tragedies describe the descent and ruin of monarchs,[78] Mussato focused his play around the fall of Ezzelino III da Romano.
[79] The play was so popular and influential that it contributed to Mussato's success in the revival of classicized writings and his receiving the poet laureate honor from the bishop and municipality of Padua.
[94] The influence behind Mussato's writing style and forms in his Historia Augusta can be traced back to ancient historians such as Livy, Sallust, Caesar, and Suetonius.
[95] Aspects of Mussato's history included documents in the text and vivid characterizations of the people he wrote about – all features that can be traced back to writers like Sallust and Suetonius.
Territus effugio pennati stagna caballi: Judicat unfirmas has Gaelinus aquas Cumque vetet princeps immunes esse poetas, A Tritone rubri me trahit unda Tagi.
Galen considers these waters dangerous to the health And since a prince refuses to give immunity to poets, the wave of the red Tagus draws me from Athens.
The brow of my song, O Henry, is rather rough; yet it is read as the faithful messenger of true sound and is pleasing to me; at least, because it will give me as a friend to you, it has already laid open the way to be plowed.