Lot 1681 Dα

The present veduta is a fine example of Carlo Canella's œuvre, the rendering of the atmosphere of a misty morning. Like his older brother Giuseppe, Carlo specialised in the depiction of city views.
The work bears witness to the wide-ranging interests of the so-called vedutists of the 19th century and their atmospheric interpretation of urban themes. It belongs to the artist's mature œuvre and was probably painted in the late 1840s on a trip to Tuscany and Florence.
As Dr Manuel Rossi kindly informs us, the view is of particular interest with regard to the topography as it shows the banks of the Arno in its appearance before 1870, i.e. before the harbours and coal stockyards were removed and the banks raised.