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HomeExhibitions → Quando l'Italia disegnava il mondo
Tesori Cartografi del Rinascimento italiano
[When Italy drew the World. Cartographic Treasures of the Italian Renaissance]

Quando l'Italia disegnava il mondo
Tesori Cartografi del Rinascimento italiano
[When Italy drew the World. Cartographic Treasures of the Italian Renaissance]


Bergamo, Italia

Organisation: Fondazione Bergamo nella storia - Civica Biblioteca Archivi Storici Angelo Mai - Associazione Robeno Almagià

This exhibition has been organized by the Cultural Association 'Roberto Almagià' (The Italian Map Collectors Association) along with the Foundation 'Bergamo nella Storia', the Angelo Mai Public Library and the Municipality of Bergamo.
The idea behind this exhibition was to temporarily recreate a large Lafreri-style map atlas using maps from the collections of the Association's members. The result of this undertaking is a set of 74 maps selected to represent the best examples of cartographic masterpieces published in Rome or Venice between 1525 and 1575. This period in time captures the heart of the Golden Age of the Cartography during the Italian Renaissance.
These maps, including some wall maps, begin with world maps, continue with maps of the continents (Africa, Asia, Americas, Europe), then with maps of European Countries, maps of regions of Italy, and finally, with some bird's-eye views of Italian cities. These maps often represent the only known surviving example or exist only in a few museums or libraries in the world. And, in most cases, these maps are only available for study to a few eminent scholars and therefore inaccessible to the general public.
The contents of the exhibition have been brought together in a richly illustrated 230 page catalogue.
One of the principal goals of the Association is to promote the diffusion and knowledge of historical maps and antique prints. By organizing this exhibition of Monumenta Cartographica, the Association hopes to open up this fascinating world not only to collectors, academics and researchers, but also to the general public. In fact, both the exhibition and the catalogue were curated with the general public in mind with details on the technical aspects of mapmaking, explanations of the story that each map is telling as well as its historical context.
The exhibition continues outside the Palazzo del Podesta, in the Tassiana Room of the Public Library Angelo Mai, where it is exhibited for the first time a rediscovered treasure: it is a precious Lafrery Atlas of maps of the sixteenth century, traced in 1979.
Venue: Palazzo del Podestà. Sala dei Giuristi - Pizza Vecchia
Time schedule:
From 16 April to 31 May: Tuesday to Sunday 9.30 to 13.00 / 14.30 to 18.00
From 1 June to 10 July: Tuesday to Friday 9.30 to 13.00 / 14.30 to 18.00; Saturdays and holidays 9.30 to 19.00
Entry fee: Full price EUR 6.00 / Reduced price EUR 4.00 / Free under 18 years old, disabled and journalists
Catalogue availability: Catalogue be purchased at the bookshop of the Museo del ‘500 (Bergamo)
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