ITALY
| Florence |
See Footnote
re
Street Numbers |
Phone Numbers- Dial 39 for Italy |
|
| Abacus |
via dei Ginori, 30r (red)
|
055 21 97 19 | A small bindery
and shop. The owner is very friendly, does very good work and has wanted
to start a teaching workshop (may have done so already). I can't give
you his name but do talk to him. (unfortunately he doesn't speak English
though so you have to get along with whatever Italian you have). (Peter Sramek - Book Sequence Gallery) |
| All'Ancora Secca | via dei Ginori, 21r | 055 21 64 23 | A store for
selling leatherbound albums, etc. The people who work there are the actual
binders and are friendly. (Peter Sramek
- Book Sequence Gallery) |
| Atelier Ricci | via Palazzuolo, 94r | 055 21 38 02 | A small bindery.
At least one of the owners is American or English (I don't remember which). (Peter Sramek - Book Sequence Gallery) |
| Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale di Firenze | Piazza dei Cavalleggeri, 1
50122 Florence |
00-39-055-24919-1 info. |
Director: Dott. Antonia Ida Fontana |
| Rome | |||
| Associazione Italiana Biblioteche c/o Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale |
Viale Castro Pretorio 105 00185 ROMA | 00-39-06-4463532 | |
| Siena | |||
| The Archivio di Stato (see footnote) |
Go to the Museo delle Tavolette di Bicherna, located in the State Archives in Siena, in the Palazzo Piccolomini, at Banchi di Sotto 53 | (0577) 247 145 |
They are open to the public. The reading room is
reserved for scholars who would need a letter of introduction from their
institution in order to do research in the archives. In 1999 they installed
an elevator. It can be reached by walking to the left when you enter
the courtyard of Palazzo Piccolomini. It may be a good idea to phone
and check the hours. They do close in August, as most government offices.
The hours are also posted at the elevator entrance and should also be
posted at the bottom of the staircase. The staff is quite helpful and
very knowledgeable. There are also other items on display such as Boccaccio's final will. |
Footnotes
1. For about three centuries the Sienese Government collected its accounts into thick books bound in wooden boards decorated with simple images and large titles. Some of these can be seen in the Museo dell' Opera Metropolitana (in Siena), and there is at least one in the Met, in New York. The tablets I've seen in either museum have a particular boldness, based in part on the broad areas of colors and the apparent use of oil glazes on top of the water-based paint; visually they fall midway between medieval illumination and modern art. (Paul Werner - WOID)
2. In Italy, the street numbers are divided between red and black (or blue) numbers.
The red refer to business or street level establishments while the black is for the inner or upper locations.
It is important because they are a completely separate listing of numbers and a 30r might be 2 blocks away from the 30b on a street. The street number signs are usually in the 2 colours, sometimes with the "r" added to the red ones.