Manutius was born in Bassiano, in the Papal States, in what is now the province of Latina, about 100 km south of Rome. He was born during the Italian Renaissance period. His family was well off, and in the early 1470s Manutius was sent to Rome to be taught as a scholar of human society and culture. He studied Latin under Gaspare da Verona and was also taught by Domizio Calderini. In 1475–1478 he studied Greek in Ferrara, under Guarino da Verona.