Gennari - Fiumi in Padova - 1776

FIRST EDITION - BRENTA, BACCHIGLIONE AND THE WATERS OF PADUA – LARGE FOLIO REPRODUCED
First edition of one of the most original eighteenth-century studies devoted to the urban and territorial history of Padua. Published in 1776 by the Padovan scholar Giuseppe Gennari, the work reconstructs the ancient courses of the rivers that crossed the city and the surrounding territory, analyzing their subsequent transformations and pairing the historical-topographical research with an interesting examination of the Padovan legislation relating to water governance. Gennari connects historical documents, antiquarian testimonies, and observations of the territory to understand how Brenta, Bacchiglione, and the complex network of canals influenced urban development, communications, economic activities, and the city’s defense. Of particular charm is the illustrative apparatus, with an etched vignette on the title page, elegant headers, initial capitals and figurative initial letters depicting buildings and views of Padua, and above all a large etched plate repeatedly folded, a fundamental cartographic complement to the text. A specimen particularly sound in its contemporaneous binding in woodcut cardboard and preserved in the original state with wide margins.

WHY TO BUY
FIRST EDITION – PADUA 1776! A pioneering study on the city’s water history.
GRANDE TAVOLA RIPIEGATA! The indispensable cartographic complement to the work.
PADOVA ILLUSTRATA! Headers and decorative initials with evocative views and city buildings.
IN BARBE AND CONTEMPORARY BINDING! A genuine specimen, with generous margins in its eighteenth-century form.

MARKET VALUE
Centuries-old studies devoted to local topography and hydrography retain good antiquarian interest, especially when complete with the cartographic apparatus and in the original editorial format. In this specimen the large folded plate, the wide margins in barbe and the contemporary woodcut-cardboard binding constitute the elements of greatest value. For a complete and well-preserved specimen a realistic retail value is in the €400-700 range, with potential for a higher asking price for particularly fresh preservation of the plate and binding.

PHYSICAL / CONDITION
Pp. (2), 16, 154, (2). Etched vignette on the title page; elegant headers, initial capitals and figurative initials, several depicting views, buildings and scenes of the city of Padua; a large off-text etched plate, folded several times. Specimen preserved in barbe, with wide original margins. Contemporary binding in woodcut-cardboard, with natural signs of use and small defects compatible with age. Leaves with occasional foxing, browning, and slight halos. The folded plate may show normal creases and minor marginal defects. As with all antique volumes, slight defects or restorations not explicitly mentioned are possible.

FULL TITLES & AUTHORS
Giuseppe Gennari (1721-1800).
Dell’antico corso de’ fiumi in Padova e ne’ suoi contorni, e de’ cambiamenti seguiti, con altre curiose notizie, e un saggio della legislazione de’ Padovani sopra questa materia.
Padova: nella Stamperia de’ Fratelli Conzatti, 1776.
PRIMA EDIZIONE.
Pp. (2), 16, 154, (2).
Con vignetta calcografica, numerose decorazioni figurate e una grande tavola calcografica ripiegata.

BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Giuseppe Gennari (Padova, 1721-1800) was a priest, scholar, historian, and chronicler, deeply connected to the cultural life of his city. He dedicated much of his activity to collecting and studying documents, memories, and testimonies related to Padovan history, developing a research method attentive both to written sources and to the material reality of the territory. Among his most important works are the Notizie giornaliere di quanto avvenne specialmente in Padova dall’anno 1739 all’anno 1800 and the Annali della città di Padova, published posthumously. Dell’antico corso de’ fiumi holds a particularly significant place in his production because it unites history, topography, hydrography, and legislation. Gennari does not merely describe watercourses, but attempts to reconstruct their variations over time and to understand the consequences such transformations had on the city’s urban fabric and activities. The volume thus represents one of the earliest systematic attempts to read Padua’s history through the relationship between the natural environment and human intervention.

RARITY
The 1776 first edition is not common and is particularly desirable when complete with the large folded plate, an element easily dispersed or damaged. The specialized and highly local nature of the work naturally limited its diffusion compared with the era’s more general literary production. Even more interesting is the preservation of the specimen in barbe and in the simple contemporaneous binding in woodcut-cardboard, features that restore the volume to its authentic eighteenth-century appearance. The enduring attention of modern studies to the work also testifies to the validity and originality of Gennari’s investigation into Padua’s hydrographic history.

HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE
The history of Padua is deeply linked to its waters. Brenta, Bacchiglione, and the dense network of natural and artificial canals determined the city’s shape, communications, productive activities, defense, and relations with the surrounding territory over the centuries. Gennari approaches this system from a historical perspective, seeking to establish where ancient rivers flowed, when their courses were altered, and what consequences such transformations had for urban organization. Particularly interesting is the integration between the physical geography of the territory and legislation: the author also analyzes the norms with which the Padovani sought to regulate the use and management of waters. The work thus constitutes a significant source not only for local history but also for the history of hydraulics, urban planning, cartography, and territorial law in the Republic of Venice. The figurative apparatus further reinforces this documentary value, restoring glimpses of eighteenth-century Padua and offering through the large folded plate a graphical representation of the issues discussed in the text.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Treccani, Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, entry on Giuseppe Gennari.
Andrea Moschetti, studies and repertories dedicated to the history and iconography of Padua.
Venetian bibliographic repertoires dedicated to the history of Padua and water management.
Giuseppe Gennari, Dell’antico corso de’ fiumi in Padova e ne’ suoi contorni, new edition edited by Luciano Morbiato, Padua, CLEUP, 2026.