The International Center for Joachimist Studies

The International Center was formally founded on Dec. 2, 1982 in San Giovanni in Fiore with the economic support of the Municipal Administrations of San Giovanni in Fiore, Celico and Luzzi. The Silan Mountain Community and the Provincial Administration of Cosenza gave their support in 1985. The Region of Calabria recognized the Center with the law N° 11 on Nov. 25, 1989. In 2001 the Municipal Administration of Carlopoli gave also its support.


During the last two decades there has been a great boom of research and publications on Joachim of Fiore. The Calabrian abbot is along with Dante and Francis of Assisi, one of the most studied author of the national cultural tradition in Europe and America.


The International Center for Joachimist studies is the reference point for this extraordinary revival of interest in the Abbot of Fiore. It collaborates with famous Italian and foreign Universities and Institutions , such as the CNR, the Deutsche Forchsungsgemeinschaft, the Italian History Institute for the Middle Ages, the Monumenta Germaniae Historica, the interdisciplinary Institute of Studies on Latin America of the University of Toulouse, the University of Calabria, the Accademy of the Lincei and the Berlin-Brandenburghische Akaademie der Wissenschadffen.
The Center has organized five International Conferences with the participation of scholars coming from Europe and America. The proceedings of the five Conferences have been published. The 14 issues of 'Florensia', the international literary journal, have also been published with 1000 copies per year.

They have also organized, in collaboration with the Italian CNR and the Deutsche Forchsungsgemeinschaft, five post-degree seminars (in 1990 in Berlin, in 1991 in Bad Homburg, in 1992 in San Giovanni in Fiore, in 1993 in Prague, in 1996 in San Giovanni in Fiore, and in 1998 in Paris).


The Center is presided over by Professor Salvatore Oliverio, whereas its Scientific Committee, which is composed by Italian, European and American scholars, is coordinated by Professor Cosimo Damiano Fonseca of the University of Basilicata and also academic of Lincei. The library of the Center contains rare books as well as codices, microfilm, videos and computers for researching.. The Center is working on collecting the manuscript of Joachim of Fiore's works spread throughout Europe. It is also microfilming the codices and has already begun the critical and definitive edition of the "Opera Omnia" of the great Abbot.
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