Zodiacus Vitae is a treatise on neo-Platonic/hermetic morality in poetic form composed of 12 songs (one for each zodiac sign), composed by Pier Angelo Manzolli (1500? -1543) under the pseudonym of Marcellus Palingenius de Stellata (the name is revealed by an acrostic to the first 24 lines of book 1). It is actually a virulent satire of the clergy, including popes (whose hypocrisy is strongly disputed), published in Venice in 1536 and dedicated to the Duke of Ferrara by its author. His vehemence earned him the wrath of the Inquisition and a blacklisting in 1559. Translated into several languages, the work was however a definite success and numerous editions circulated in Europe.
 
Marcelli Palingenii Stellati Poeta Doctissimi Zodiacus Vitae de vita, studio, ac moribus. Hominum optime institendis. Libri XII. Editio nova.
 
1736 Small-8°. 17x10cm. Frontispiece (copper engraving), title in red and black, 4 sheets, 320 pages, 17 sheets (index). parchment of the time. Cover stained, outer fold with a small tear, owner's entries on endpaper and title page, a few underlinings in red. Good copy. Language: Latin.