On his pilgrimage to Jerusalem from his native Italian peninsula, Niccolò da Poggibonsi wanted to tell the wonders of Venice. He did it in writing, usual practice in travelers, but accompanied his description of a schematic drawing in which the churches, canals and boats of the city of the canals were appreciated. Without major artistic intention, the work of man, believed to have arrived in the Holy Land between 1346 and 1350, has now revealed itself as the first sight of Venice ever drawn. The finding, found in a manuscript of the Florentine Library, is the result of research from the University of Saint Andrews, in Scotland.
The researcher who has found the drawing, the historian specializing in the Venetian history of the Renaissance Sandra Toffolo, was in the Florentine Library last May preparing a monograph on the city of canals when she ran into the image. He noticed that it was the oldest representation of a view of the city known to date, although general and portulano maps where Venice appeared older are known. Among them the oldest is a map that came out of the hands of Fra Paolino, a Venetian Franciscan, around 1330. The manuscript is dated approximately in 1350, and presumably was drafted after the return of Da Poggibonsi from Jerusalem.
Made by pen, the drawing had small holes made with a sharp object. The technique was used to trace works: under the original another surface was placed and, as if it were a sieve, some type of powder pigment was passed through the holes, which were deposited on the lower surface; It was easier to copy the original.
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"These holes are a clear indication that the view of the city was copied. In fact, there are several images in manuscripts and primitive books that are clearly based on the image of the Florence manuscript," said the researcher in a statement your university.
The finding supposes to demonstrate, according to the researcher, that Venice "already exerted great fascination on the contemporaries" of the pilgrim, and will be part of the researcher's monograph, which is entitled Describing the City, Describing the State (Describe the city, describe the State, in English), which is published this year.
