Venetian Palaces

Rating:
Summary: informative, comprehensive and visually stunning!
Review: A beautifull book that comprehensively covers the history and design of the palazzos of Venice. Particularly noteworthy for many stunning interior shots that are rarely find in other publications, and for the family crests that accompany each building. Excellent text that places each building stylistically, historically and contextually. Good paper stock and type. Makes you want to paint your walls red and cover everything in velvet. Really!

Rating:
Summary: Venetian Palaces
Review: If you appreciate Venetian architecture or any architecture, this is an absolute must have book. I could only rate it five stars, but it deserves a hundred. The best book on Venice in my library of over a dozen, hands down!

Rating:
Summary: A must-have book
Review: Love the book. Great photography and easy reading. Venice is poetry and romance and this book captures the essence of that. Highly recommend to all readers and travelers.

Rating:
Summary: Float Through Heaven on a Gondola
Review: Open this book and you will float down Venice's Palace lined canals, stopping at over eighty grandiose residences. Sometimes you will stand in their porticos, to see the canal from behind the elaborately carved facade, other times you will be ushered into their private interiors of unrestrained luxury. Full room views to take in the sumptious furnishings and decorations. Close ups allow you to feast your eyes on the intricately carved and gilded ceiling beams, world famous Renaissance paintings and the rich damasks and silks, marble sculpture, oriental carpets.

Starting with a history of the most illustrious families and then an outline of Venetian Heraldry, the introduction sets the scene for your voyage. In these beginning pages you will find crisp reproductions of engravings and paintings illustrating various residences, city views, family documents and other aspects of private life. Divided up by styles, the tour begins with Venetian-Byzantine architecture, followed by Gothic, Renaissance and the Sixteenth Century and finishing off with the Seventeeth to the Twentieth Centuries.

The author, Alvise Forsi, who is dedicated to the historic preservation of this city, focuses primarily on the history, rather than the architectural and interior aspects. With 500 spectacular photographs brought to life with intriguing backgrounds of the privileged inhabitants and their families, this book is a wonderful choice.

Rating:
Summary: Float Through Heaven on a Gondola
Review: Open this book and you will float down Venice's Palace lined canals, stopping at over eighty grandiose residences. Sometimes you will stand in their porticos, to see the canal from behind the elaborately carved facade, other times you will be ushered into their private interiors of unrestrained luxury. Full room views to take in the sumptious furnishings and decorations. Close ups allow you to feast your eyes on the intricately carved and gilded ceiling beams, world famous Renaissance paintings and the rich damasks and silks, marble sculpture, oriental carpets.

Starting with a history of the most illustrious families and then an outline of Venetian Heraldry, the introduction sets the scene for your voyage. In these beginning pages you will find crisp reproductions of engravings and paintings illustrating various residences, city views, family documents and other aspects of private life. Divided up by styles, the tour begins with Venetian-Byzantine architecture, followed by Gothic, Renaissance and the Sixteenth Century and finishing off with the Seventeeth to the Twentieth Centuries.

The author, Alvise Forsi, who is dedicated to the historic preservation of this city, focuses primarily on the history, rather than the architectural and interior aspects. With 500 spectacular photographs brought to life with intriguing backgrounds of the privileged inhabitants and their families, this book is a wonderful choice.

Rating:
Summary: Venetian Palaces - A Brief Review
Review: The photos found in this book are great. They reveal the details of the sculptures found in various palaces in Venice to the extent that it looks as if the sculpture you are staring at is placed in front of you! On the other hand, the illustration of each palace is preceded by the coat-of-arm of the family that originally owns the palace, except the Doge's Palace. I must admit that the coat-of-arms in parade are rarely shown in those books about Venice and each of them is more than just attractive - they are masterpiece of art and exotic!! P.S. I am most impressed by the photo that features the western facade of the Doge's Palace in Saint Mark Square. It reflects the fact that the Doge's Palace is surely one of the most outstanding palaces in the world!