When Francesco Chiesa published his last poetry collection - the 'Sonetti di San Silvestro' - in 1971, he was a hundred years old and had almost become a legend in Ticino. The younger generation had long turned away from him and was forging its own paths. However, it was Chiesa who had paved the literary ground for them at the beginning of the 20th century, through his tireless work and his connection to Italy. He had published his first poetry collection in 1897. With 'Calliope', a three-part poem consisting of 220 sonnets, he achieved breakthrough success in Italy in 1907. The 'Sonetti di San Silvestro' represent the pinnacle of his lyrical work. In their timelessness and 'immobility', these poems have lost none of their original charm. In them, Chiesa playfully engages with the form of the sonnet, managing to renew it through surprising solutions.