Florence: A Traveller's Reader - Softcover

Chaney, Edward

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1472141296 ISBN 13: 9781472141293

Publisher: Robinson, 2018

Synopsis

Of all Italian cities, Florence has always had the strongest English accent: the Goncourt brothers in 1855 called it 'ville tout anglaise'. Though that accent is diminished now, Florence remains for the English-speaking traveller what it always has been - one of the best loved, and most visited, of cities.

In this Traveller's Reader, Florence's rich and glorious past is brought vividly to life for the tourist of today through the medium of letters, diaries and memoirs of travellers to Florence from past centuries and of the Florentines themselves. The extracts chosen by cultural historain Edward Chaney include: Boccaccio on the Black Death; Vasari on the building of Giotto's Campanile; an eye-witness account of the installation of Michaelangelo's 'David'; the death of Elizabeth Barrett Browning at the Casa Guidi; and D. H. Lawrence and Dylan Thomas on twentieth-century Florentine society.

Sir Harold Acton's introduction provides a concise history of the city from its origins, through its zenith as a prosperous city state which, under the Medici, gave birth to the Renaissance, and up to the Arno's devastating flood in 1966. Sir Harold Acton, man of letters, historian, aesthete, novelist and poet, spent most of his life in Florence. Among his best-known books is The Last Medici, Memoirs of an Aesthete.

Currently Professor of Fine and Decorative Arts at Southampton Solent University, Edward Chaney is an honorary life member of the British Institute of Florence and taught at the University of Pisa for six years.

About this title

Book Description:

The rich and glorious past of one of the best loved cities in the world, Florence, is brought vividly to life for today's visitor in this collection which draws on letters, diaries and memoirs of travellers to Florence and the Florentines themselves.

From the Back Cover:

The rich and glorious past of one of the best loved cities in the world brought to life for the modern visitor

Florence remains for the English-speaking traveller what it always has been - one of the best loved, and most visited, of cities. The Goncourt brothers in 1885 called it 'ville toute anglaise' and for centuries it enjoyed an essential position on the itinerary of any self-respecting Grand Tourist.

In this Traveller's Reader, cultural historian Edward Chaney brings vividly to life Florence's eclectic history for today's visitor through the letters, diaries and memoirs of travellers to Florence and of the Florentines themselves. The extracts chosen include an eyewitness account of the installation of Michelangelo's 'David'; the death of Elizabeth Barrett Browning at the Casa Guidi; previously unpublished accounts of key historical events and experiences on the Grand Tour; as well as D.H. Lawrence and Dylan Thomas on twentieth-century Florentine society.

Sir Harold Acton provides a brilliant short history of Florence from its origins, through its zenith as a prosperous city state which, under the Medici, gave birth to the Renaissance, and up to the Arno's devastating flood in 1966.

Expertly compiled and edited by Professor Chaney, this is an indispensable book for any discerning traveller or student.

About this edition

• Publisher: Robinson
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 1472141296
• ISBN 13: 9781472141293
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 416