Les Delices de l’Italie. Vol. I

1706

Shoults Lb 1706 R

[Leiden]: Pierre Vander Aa

In the Venetian lagoon is the city of Venice, called affectionately ‘Serenissima’ or ‘Most Serene Republic’. And of course dominating the water-scape are the gondolas, which for centuries were the chief means of transportation. In the 16th century there were some 10,000 gondolas operating the canals. Today, there are 425 licensed gondoliers, including the first and most recently licensed (2010) female gondolier, Giorgia Boscolo. Gondolas are remarkably uniform, each measuring 10.87m long (35ft 6ins) and 1.42m wide (4ft 6ins), and each constructed from the same eight woods. This 1706 engraving depicts smaller vessels and the sleek gondolas, which poet Shelley likened to ‘moths of which a coffin might have been the chrysalis.’