BALTIMORE - James S. Grubb, professor of history at UMBC, was awarded the Helen and Howard R. Marraro Prize of the Society for Italian Historical Studies for his recent book, Provincial Families of the Italian Renaissance: Private and Public Life in the Veneto. The annual prize, given to an American author for literature on Italian history, is considered the leading award in the field. Grubb will be recognized at the American Historical Society Annual Meeting in Seattle next month.

Unlike other works about the Renaissance, which often focus on elite or low social classes, Grubb examines the daily routines and customs of common society. Based on memoirs and other records of thirteen merchant families from the Veneto cities of Verona and Vicenza, Provincial Families of the Renaissance delves into the attitudes and experiences of families of modest means and local ambitions. Grubb's glimpses into marriage, death, spirituality and ideology offer a new perspective on life in the 15th century.