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Title: Rome Then and Now (Compact) (Then & Now Thunder Bay)
ISBN: 1592238319
Author:
Federica D'Orazio
Publicate Date: 2007-07-28
Publish: 2007-07-28
List Price: $12.95
Average Customer Rating: 4.5
Format: Paperback
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Amazon Lowest New Price: $7.51
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $7.50
Amazon Merchant Price: $10.36
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| Customer Review: |
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1: Rome Then and Now
I bought a few copies of this book for friends who live in Rome knowing that they will enjoy the photos of familiar places and how those places have evolved in the last 100 years. Of course, the evolution started 2000 years ago but there were no photos then.
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2: Rome Then and Now
I have been to Rome several times. This book only made me want to pack and leave immediately with it in hand. What a difference - in the mid-19th century there were goats, and sheep in front of the many historic sites. Rome changes and it does not. A paradox. No it is eternal.
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3: Mesmerizing
This book juxtaposes photos of Rome from the past with modern photos. You can see the rise and fall of Rome through the changes in skyline and landscape. It is especially amazing to see not just what has changed, but the particulars that have stayed the same. This book is great for people who study Rome, those who have fond memories of visiting Rome, and even those who just enjoy history.
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4: Recommended, with Reservations
As a lover and long-time inhabitant of Rome, I grabbed at this book when I found it on the remainder table of a major bookstore. The "then" part of the book--antique photographs, many of which date to the 19th century--constitutes a marvelous record of Rome's not-too-distant past. The "now' part of the book, however, leaves much to be desired. First, many of the color-photos are washed-out, apparently over-exposed. Buildings are white, skies are even whiter, and much detail of Rome's magnificent architecture has been lost. Next, many of the modern photos have been taken with a wider angle of lens, and from a different perspective than the original photos. In some cases, as when the ground has been excavated some twenty feet (e.g., the Campo Vaccino--now the Forum), accuracy of angle may not be possible; but in others (such as Piazza Colonna with the Antonine column) the same relative perspective is achievable. An egregious example may be found in the pair of photos, one of Piazza Cesarini, taken from one corner [The Via delle Botteghe Oscure? Apparently, since the author mentions the nearby marble-burning kilns.], and the companion picture of the Largo Argentina, taken from the opposite direction, looking from the back of the Republican temples towards the Torre Argentina and the Botteghe Oscure. Since the perspectives are different, the effect of the contrast is diluted.
Much of the value of a book such as this is to be able to view the same area from exactly the same viewpoint so that the changes in architecture and landscape become immediately apparent. And it is the changes in architecture and topography that are important, not the fact that men are wearing bowlers and driving carriages in the old photos, and wearing baseball caps and driving SUVs in the new.
One of the pairs of pictures that does work is that of the little Bramante tempietto of St. John Boiled-In-Oil. In the 1911 photograph on the left, the entrance to the Porta Latina is filled with rubble; in the modern photo on the right--taken from approximately the same angle--the rubble has been cleared, and cars are driving through the travertine-revetted entrance. Here, the differences are unequivocal.
Much of the enchantment of Rome derives from its juxtaposition of warm honeyed light and deep velvet shadow--an aspect totally absent from this book. As I said in my title, I recommend the book--the old photographs are of especial interest to anyone who has ever lived in this charmed city. Because of the largely washed-out modern photographs, however, I have recommended it with reservations--reservations on your favorite airline, that is.
Fly away and recapture the magic of Rome for yourself.
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5: For every lover of Rome
A beautiful book of photos, and a must-have for everyone who loves Rome.
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