Vincenzo Dotto (1572-1629) was a Paduan architect and cartographer, described in Portenari’s volume as “a most excellent geographer” (p. 96), “versed in cosmography, and architecture. He drew the plan of the city of Padua included in this book with great delicacy” (p. 273).

The walls of Padua were commissioned by the Venetian Republic, and built under the supervision of Bartolomeo d’Alviano, a condottiero or mercenary soldier in the employ of the republic; the work, in phases, was carried out between about 1509 and 1535, with some sections designed by Giovanni Maria Falconetto. Large sections of the wall survive to the present time.