Navigating censorship: Galileo and Diodati’s plan for the publication of the Two New Sciences

This article explores the background of the editorial operation that led to the publication of Galileo Galilei’s Two New Sciences in 1638. As it was for the Latin editions of the Dialogue (1635) and the Letter to the Grand Duchess Christina of Lorraine (1636), Galileo actively participated in the printing operations of his final work, even though in the introductory texts he claimed to have no involvement whatsoever. The analysis of three manuscript sheets preserved at the Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale di Firenze highlights not only Galileo’s active role in the editorial process but also his contribution to devising a plan to appear completely uninvolved in that publication. In the National Edition of Galileo’s works by Antonio Favaro, it is noted that these three sheets are written in the same handwriting, without identifying the author. This article intends to show that the author of these manuscripts is Elia Diodati. The comparison of the handwriting on these sheets with other autograph letters by Diodati, alongside the reconstruction of the role played by the Parisian jurist in the editorial operation, supports this hypothesis.