Čudesnaja žizn’ Iosifa Bal’zamo, grafa Kaliostro, ovvero le frontiere di un alchimista

Abstract

Čudesnaja žizn’ Iosifa Bal’zamo, grafa Kaliostro (1916) by Michail Kuzmin is the fictionalized biography which recounts the key stages of the famous Italian occultist’s daring life. This biography shows Cagliostro’s amazing journey through Europe, in order to define his fluctuating life and human and intellectual growth. My research aims to highlight in Kuzmin’s narrative some crucial phases of Cagliostro’s existence, mainly during his staying in Rome, London and Petersburg, which overturn the restless adventurer’s stereotypical image. Some priemy by Kuzmin will be examined and analysed to stress their artistic functions in order to show how Kuzmin succeeded in creating a renovated psychological portrait of his Italian character, a man of unexpected integrity very different from the one made by the official historiography.