Intute presents the 15 most recent Web resources for education and research added to our Italian subject area 21 Nov 2009 03:30:01 GMT en-uk http://www.intute.ac.uk/italian/latest.html Logo for the Intute service http://www.intute.ac.uk/images/intute_100_new.png 100 42 http://www.intute.ac.uk/italian/latest.html http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090621-08033832 http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090621-08033832 The "Pietro Metastasio: drammi per musica" ["Pietro Metastasio: musical dramas"] project makes available online full-text of musical dramas produced by Pietro Metastasio (1698-1782). Twenty-six librettos in various editions - amounting to a corpus of one hundred and forty-one versions - are accessible. Metastasio often adapted or rewrote the same texts according to various criteria, including the suggestions received by his patrons. The "Didone abbandonata", for example, appeared in nine different editions between 1724 and 1780. The database can be searched or browsed. Texts are listed in both alphabetical and chronological order. An index of names and lexicon section, providing a list of occurrences, are additionally available, both helpfully linked to the corresponding librettos. A guide gives helpful guidance on how to use the database. The website - available in Italian only - would be of interest to researchers studying Pietro Metastasio's work and musical production. Sat, 11 Jul 2009 00:00:01 GMT http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20081117-12565975 http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20081117-12565975 The website of the Venice Hellenic Institute makes available online valuable resources relating to the history of the Orthodox community resident in the lagoon city. From the Byzantine era onward, Greek merchants were active in Venice. In 1498 a Greek Orthodox Confraternity was founded with the approval of the Venetian authorities. The site offers information on the Hellenic Institute, established in 1953, its library, archive and museum of icons. A selection of devotional images can be viewed online. A description is given of the premises in which the Institute is housed, the "Collegio Flanghinis", and the Church of Saint George of the Greeks. The multimedia section "Scrittura e miniatura" ("Script and miniature in the manuscripts of the Hellenic Institute in Venice 12th-14th cent.") enables users to access facsimile electronic reproductions of manuscripts from the Institute collection. Three thematic sections are presented: the Byzantine book (dedicated to illuminated manuscripts, religious and secular, and to scribes and illuminators); types of script in the manuscripts (dedicated to Byzantine script and writing); examples taken from Codex no. 5, a codex preserved at the Hellenic Institute. Images can be enlarged and are accompanied by explanatory texts. Additionally, users can listen to an audio version of the text. In the case of the Codex no. 5 the entire manuscript has been reproduced and users can turn through the 193 leaves. A magnifier option enables closer inspection of sections of the leaves. The "Script and miniature in the manuscripts of the Hellenic Institute in Venice 12th-14th cent." is available in Greek, English and Italian, and provides additionally a relevant bibliography. The main pages of the website - in Italian only - also contain information on events and publications organised or produced by the Institute. Sat, 11 Jul 2009 00:00:01 GMT http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090621-08061478 http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090621-08061478 This is the website of the Centro Internazionale di Studi di Architettura Andrea Palladio (CISA) [Andrea Palladio International Centre of Architectural Studies]. Founded in 1958 and located in Palazzo Barbaran da Porto, Vicenza, Italy, the Centre is a research institute dedicated to the work of the architect Andrea Palladio (1508-1580) and history of architecture generally from antiquity to the 20th century. The website offers a detailed biography of the Padua-born architect and description of his development and the emergence of his personal architectural style. The design and building of countryside villas and city palaces (three major ones located in Vicenza, including the Palazzo Barbaran da Porto) are discussed. A list of relevant publications, additionally numbering facsimiles editions and scholarly journals, is available for perusal. The section "Palladio and the Veneto" offers valuable resources to researchers and students. Users can access a sizeable selection of images, including plans and architectural drawings, of palaces and villas designed by Andrea Palladio and located in the Veneto region. For each building several images are provided together with a description, an outline of their history and bibliographical references. Images are indexed alphabetically and by subject. A helpful interactive map permits users to retrieve images by locations too. An "Exhibition archive" section makes available images and texts from past exhibitions held at the Centre. Virtual tours of the exhibitions, featuring 360 degree viewing of exhibits thereby enabling users to experience the exhibitions themselves. The "Annali di architettura", the official journal published by the Centre, can be downloaded as PDF files. The Centre houses a photo library and a library. Its collection, comprising over 32.000 volumes, focuses on the history of art and architecture and includes 2.000 rare or precious editions. The library's catalogue is available online. The Centre organises seminars and conferences, details of which are presented on the site. Fri, 10 Jul 2009 00:00:01 GMT http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090621-07574292 http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090621-07574292 The website "Abbazia di Montecassino" ["Montecassino Abbey"] is a highly graphic site containing a sizeable number of images and other resources covering the history and role of the Benedictine Abbey of Montecassino, located in the Campania region of Southern Italy. The site outlines the major events in the Abbey's history from foundation by Saint Benedict in 529 to its reconstruction in 1964, following the destruction of 1944. In the course of its history, the Abbey was destroyed or severely damaged on a number of occasions, most notably by the earthquake of 1349 and heavy bombardment in 1944. For each event explanatory text is available together with images and, in the case of the 1944 destruction, additional film footage. A virtual tour enables users to explore the Abbey, moving through its floor plan to the various parts of the building. Texts and images are available including 360 degree viewing. Additionally, users can listen to a selection of monastic chants as performed by the chorus of Abbey monks. A section is dedicated to Saint Benedict (ca. 480 - ca. 547) founder of the Abbey, and the Rule which governs the monastic life of the Benedictine order. The life of Saint Scholastica (480-547), Saint Benedict's sister, who lived in the vicinity of the Abbey, is also recounted. The Diocese and to-day monastic life at the Abbey are described. Additionally, the site offers information on religious events and the "Terra Sancti Benedicti", a historical procession held in March each year during the Benedictine celebrations at Cassino and Montecassino. The site and its resources are accessible in both Italian and English. Fri, 10 Jul 2009 00:00:01 GMT http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090621-07593263 http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090621-07593263 This is the website of the "Centro Studi Casa Natale Maria Montessori" ["Native Home Maria Montessori Studies Centre"] dedicated to the Italian educationalist Maria Montessori (1870-1952) and her advocacy for a new method of education, now internationally renowned as the "Montessori method of education". The website presents a short description of her family home in Chiaravalle, near Ancona in the Marche region, and of the museum which it now houses. A selection of photographs and images of a few exhibits are available to view online. The website presents an index of works by Maria Montessori and a list of pedagogical publications held in Centre's library. A section is dedicated to the "Montessori method of education" and to the theory and practice aiming at assisting children's development and learning process. The Centre stated mission is to promote and disseminate Maria Montessori's work and ideas. The Centre produces topical publications, brief outlines of which are available on the site. Sun, 5 Jul 2009 00:00:01 GMT http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090619-10395585 http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090619-10395585 This is the website of the "Museo Bodoniano" [Giambattista Bodoni Museum] in Parma, Italy. The Museum is dedicated to Giambattista Bodoni (1740-1813) and his work as printer and typographer. The website presents a short history of the Museum and a description of its collections, which include rare samples of Bodonian editions, correspondence, typographic types, punches and matrices. Additionally available is a bibliography of works related to the institution. A section of the website includes a biography of Giambattista Bodoni and an extensive bibliography. The Museo Bodoniano, inaugurated in 1963 to mark the 150th anniversary of Bodoni's death, is the oldest Italian museum of printing. The Museum is a corporate member of the Association of European Printing Museums (AEPM) and the "Associazione Italiana dei Musei della Stampa e della Carta [Italian Museums of Printing and Paper Association]. The website - available in Italian only - offers detailed information on past and forthcoming related events and exhibitions. Sun, 5 Jul 2009 00:00:01 GMT http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090613-07391116 http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090613-07391116 This is the website of "Roma nel Rinascimento" ["Rome during the Renaissance"], an association aiming to promote the study of Rome, its social structure and cultural development, in the late late Medieval period and the Renaissance (beginning of the fourteenth century to the second half of the sixteenth). Amongst topics which constitute the core of the Association research interest are: a comprehensive census of unpublished materials, including manuscripts and epigraphs; the studying of the printers and book traders operating in Rome during fifteenth century and the beginning of the sixteenth; the study of the pontificate of Pope Martin V (1417-1431), Sixtus IV (1471-1484) and Alexander IV (1492-1503). The Association produces various publications - a list of which can be accessed online - including a series of facsimile reproductions of fundamental texts on Rome and its history. The website enables users to access the database "Onomasticon", an index of names appearing in chronicles and narratives dating from the fifteenth century to the Sack or Rome of 1527. Additionally available are: the "Indice bio-bibliografico di Roma nel Rinascimento" ["Bio-bibliographical index of Rome during the Rinascimento"] a name index of individuals as appearing in the various publications of the Association and the "Indice del corpus borgiano" ["Index of the Borgian corpus"] containing an index of names and places based on the publications produced by the Comitato Nazionale "Incontri di Studio per il V Centenario del pontificato di Alessandro VI". The website presents information on past and forthcoming events organised by the Association. Sun, 5 Jul 2009 00:00:01 GMT http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090516-1128147 http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090516-1128147 This is an interactive website for Giambattista Nolli's famous 1748 map of Rome, said to be... "widely regarded by scholars as one of the most important historical documents of the city ever created". The website was created by the University of Oregon, and features six full-text scholarly essays on aspects of the map, as well as a Flash-based interactive Nolli Map Engine, enabling a viewer to zoom into fine details on the map, and to filter the map by types of features. Essays include: 'The Forgotten Landscape of Rome: The Disabitato'; 'The Walls of Rome'; 'Rioni: The Districts of Rome'; 'The Nolli Map as Artifact'; and 'The Nolli Map and Urban Theory'. This may be a useful tool for those interested in the history or Rome, or in antiquarian cartographic approaches and techniques. Wed, 1 Jul 2009 00:00:01 GMT http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20081027-10191097 http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20081027-10191097 Produced by the Archivio di Stato di Roma, the Imago II Project website is an excellent resource, providing access to digital reproductions of some of the most heavily-used and important fonds in the Archive. At time of review, eight fonds have been digitized, comprising: the Alessandrino land registry; the Urban land registry; the Gregorian land registry; the Old land registry maps; Parchments; Precious volumes; Notaries and Tesoreries. Explanatory texts introduce each fond, presenting a description of documents included, while a more general guide to the collection of the Archivio di Stato di Roma is available in PDF. Users can search or browse each fond. Digital facsimiles are of outstanding quality and images can be enlarged to enable better viewing. The Alessandrino land registry, for example, makes available a strong and rare collection of more than 400 aquarelle maps and fine images of the Roman countryside. The Gregorian land registry section presents a selection of reproductions of maps surveying the Papal States taken from the 1835 land registry of Pope Gregory XVI. It comprises in excess of 1.400 images. Free registration is required to access the database and the digital facsimiles. A short bibliography on the Project and its achievements is available for consultation. The website has been listed on the Unesco Archives Portal. Thu, 25 Jun 2009 00:00:01 GMT http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20080314-13073133 http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20080314-13073133 Created to celebrate two-hundred years of the foundation of the Italian Stock Exchange in 1808, this website presents an interesting excursion through the history of the Milan-based financial institution. Three interconnected thematic sections enable users to access valuable resources and information on the history of the Italian Stock Exchange, from its inception to the present day. Each section includes reproductions of documents of relevance, which can be downloaded as PDF files. Also available are photographs and video clips, including, for example, a visit of Benito Mussolini to the newly-completed Stock Exchange building in 1932. The "Geographical Tour" section is dedicated to the numerous other Stock Exchanges which operated in different Italian cities, including Trieste. The Stock Exchange in Trieste was the earliest to be founded and would become part of the Italian system only following the annexation of the city to Italy in 1918. Several photographs on display show their premises in Rome, Florence, Venice and other locations. The "Thematic Tour" presents information on people who held various high-office during the period 1808 to 1991 and on the so-called "Palazzo Mezzanotte", the current building in Milan where the Stock Exchange is based. Additionally, the website makes available a bibliography, focussing on the history of the financial institution and a glossary of terminologies used. Thu, 25 Jun 2009 00:00:01 GMT http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20080929-06271231 http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20080929-06271231 "Storia e Futuro: Rivista di storia e storiografia" ["History and Future: Journal of history and historiography"] is an online journal dedicated to the study of history and historiography. The journal focusses on the social, economical, political and cultural changes of contemporary societies. Based at the Department of Historical Studies of the University of Bologna, the publication draws on the contributions of established historians and academics. The journal is subdivided into several sections. Full-text of all articles present can be downloaded as PDF files. Texts are in Italian, but abstracts in English are available too in addition to short biographies of contributors. Current and all past issues can be accessed and an internal search engine allows users to explore the journal's contents. A regular section is dedicated to history and photography as a historical resource. Books reviews and announcement of forthcoming publications are available under the heading "Scaffale". Users can subscribe to a mailing list and the site offers information on events of relevance taking place in Italy and elsewhere. The depth and broadness of themes covered and the quality of contributions make this journal a valuable reading for scholars and researchers in history and associated fields. Sun, 14 Jun 2009 00:00:01 GMT http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090122-16595424 http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090122-16595424 ImaGo online is a website produced by the University of Bologna which aims at creating a database of unpublished photographs originating from private collections and covering a wide range of topics, though focussing of social history. The database - which at time of review included 19.400 images with forthcoming additions envisaged - can be searched or browsed by means of fourteen different headings it has been subdivided into. Topics listed include: work; politics, customs and holiday. Several essays on ImaGo are accessible from the homepage, each describing a specific aspect of the photographic archive and its content. An interesting section is dedicated to weddings and includes photographs dating from 1884 to 2003. Another to "Families in changing Italy", which contains photographs from the years 1954 to 1978. These sections are accompanied by explanatory texts, essays and helpful bibliographies. Additionally, the site allows users to access a few video interviews completed as part of a research project focussing on changes in everyday life in a small town situated in the Marche region. Listed are several publications relating to the topics as covered by the website and details of events, past and forthcoming. ImaGo online emphasizes the value of photographs as historical documents which can be treated as primary evidence by scholars and researchers. Sat, 13 Jun 2009 00:00:01 GMT http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090219-12550414 http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090219-12550414 This is the website for a series of four 2007 AHRC-funded interdisciplinary workshops centred around the experience of migration from Italy to other countries from the beginning of the last century to the present. The website includes a brief programme of each workshop, which included topics such as "Private Places in Open Spaces: Italians Representing their Life in Colonial Africa" and "Italian Ethnic Identity as a Construction: Immigrants and Their Offspring in the United States". The website also includes a very useful resource guide to Italian, which provides an introduction to the subject as represented in film and literature, together with artistic and sociological responses as well as details of three migration-related databases. Fri, 12 Jun 2009 00:00:01 GMT http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090604-19533392 http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090604-19533392 This is the website of the project involved in translating Fabritio Caroso's ‘Il Ballarino’ (1581), a dance manual. The project aims to scan, transcribe, translate and reconstruct the dance manual. ‘Il Ballarino’ was written as two books, the first being a list of steps and instructions for performing them, and the second being instructions and music for dances using those steps. Both books are included in this translation. The manual contains 77 dances. There is an introduction to the project, images from a facsimile of Il Ballarino, a scanned copy of the facsimile which one can download in its entirety as a PDF file (21 megabytes), a transcription with options to view the raw text and the ‘clean’ text, a translation and transcriptions and notes of music. The website also contains articles about the subject and a scanned copy of Florio’s 1611 Italian/English dictionary. Thu, 11 Jun 2009 00:00:01 GMT http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090507-10154973 http://www.intute.ac.uk/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=20090507-10154973 This website, from the Claremont Colleges Digital Library, provides invaluable online access to a number of primary source correspondences from the Italian Renaissance. While the website itself is available in English, the letters are in Italian and no further information is supplied. Users without a knowledge of Italian, or early modern palaeography, may find the resources somewhat difficult to use as a result. Nonetheless, the website can be searched by keyword; or it can be browsed by author (including a number of the Medici family), by location, by subject (i.e. the information contained in the individual letters) and by general time period. The letters are arranged together (into recto and verso) and the website is very easy to navigate and use. The images themselves are of a very high quality. Fri, 29 May 2009 00:00:01 GMT