Pietro Alcionio (Petrus Alcyonius) was a humanist and classical scholar. He studied Greek under Marcus Musurus, the renowned editor of many of Aldus Manutius’ printed Greek texts, and later himself became a proof reader for the Aldine Press. He was appointed Professor of Greek in Florence in 1522, and that same year published the present work at the Aldine Press.

Medices legatus de exsilio is an imaginary dialogue set in 1512 between the exiled Medici Giovanni, Giulio and Lorenzino on the benefits of exile, shortly before their return to Florence in 1513. Its Ciceronian style was apparently so good that Paulus Manutius (sone of Aldus) was able to accuse Alcionio of plagiarism: that he had copied a lost work of Cicero’s (De Gloria) before destroying the only known copy to conceal his crime.