Venice - Queen of the Adriatic
By UGHI, Lodovico , 1739
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Iconografica Rappresentazione della Inclita Città di Venezia Consacrata al Reggio Serenissimo Domino Veneto.

Europe Italy
  • Author: UGHI, Lodovico
  • Publication place: Venice
  • Publisher: Ludovico Furlanetto Sopra el Ponte dé Baretteri
  • Publication date: c1739
  • Physical description:

    Large engraved wall map on eight sheets, title to banner at top, 16 views of Venice to left and right borders, text below, joined and mounted on linen; some areas of loss reinstated, tears skillfuly repaired, surface abrasion in some areas as expected in wall maps of this size.

  • Dimensions: 1497 by 2055mm. (59 by 81 inches).
  • Inventory reference: 15323

To scale:

Notes

One of the largest maps of Venice ever published, and the first map of the city based upon accurate field surveys. Lodovico Ughi’s topographical map is a landmark in the cartographic history of Venice. Successive Venetian mapmakers in general did not significantly alter the appearance of the city: among the exceptions is Ughi’s work. Not only is it one of the largest printed plans of Venice, but it also served for centuries as a model for subsequent maps.

At the sides are 16 views: the Piazza San Marco, the Doge’s Palace, the Basilica di San Marco, the Arsenal, the Rialto Bridge, the church of San Giorgio Maggiore, the church of Santissimo Redentore, and the church of Santa Maria della Salute. The views have been tentatively assigned to the Venetian artist and engraver Francesco Zucchi (1692-1764), made after Luca Carlevarij’s ‘Fabriche e Vedute di Venetia’, published in 1703.

To the lower left is the coat of arms of Francesco Morosini, surrounded by putti and military equipment. Francesco Morosini (1619-1694) was the last of the “warrior Doges”. He is most famed for his victories over the Ottomans during the Morean War (1684-1699), in which he captured most of the Morea. For this he was awarded the honorary title “Peloponnesiacus”, and was the first Venetian citizen to have a bronze bust placed during his own lifetime in the Great Hall.

To the upper right is a personification of Venice with the lion of Saint Mark at her feet, surrounded by marine creatures representing her marriage to the sea and the riches she derives from it. The image is taken from a drawing by the Venetian painter Sebastiano Ricci (1659 – 1734). The cartouche at the bottom right holds a dedication written by Lodovico Ughi Alvise Mocenigo, the Doge in 1729. He calls the city “blessed by the Virgin, divine, Queen of the Adriatic, always envied, a constant sustainer of the Catholic religion, known throughout the world for her justice, feared by her enemies, defended in all times by her sons who have sacrificed their lives”. Below the map is a long text panel providing information about Venice.

Examples are held at the Bibliothèque Nationale de France; Houghton Library, Harvard; Zentralbibliothek Zurich (map only); Leiden University Library; and Dresden University Library.

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