Da 'dispensa' a 'coperta': contributo allo studio della produzione documentaria della Penitenzieria Apostolica in età moderna

The article presents the results of the recovery and study of a documentary fragment reused as the cover of a book, most likely of a literary nature, now preserved in the Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale in Rome. The fragment represents one of the rare documentary expressions in the form of an original of the activity of the so-called Ufficio di minor grazia, which was established by Pope Pius V in 1569, following the reform of the Apostolic Penitentiary. Specifically, the article analyses the graphic and diplomatic characters of the document in order to offer a first contribution to the knowledge of the documentary practice of the Office, until now known only thanks to the edition of a few and scanty original documents preserved in various archives and libraries in Europe and South America.