Venice: Lion City The Religion of Empire by Wills, Garry - 2001

New York: Simon & Schuster, 2001. -----Quarter bound in grey cloth beigh boards with gilt on spine, headband, 415 pages plus 16 full colour plates, no names, dust jacket is in Near Fine condition. "Venice: Lion City presents a new way of relating the history of the city through its art &, in turn, illuminates the art through the city's history. In their culture, their governing structures, and their social life, the Venetians themselves speak to us with extraordinary immediacy, whether at work, warfare, prayer, or acting out their victories, celebrations, and petitions in the colorful festivals that punctuated the year. Venice: Lion City is illustrated with more than 130 works of art, 30 in full color. Garry Willis gives us a unique view of Venice's rulers, merchants, clerics, and laborers, its Jews, and its women as they created a city that is the greatest art museum in the world, a city that continues to lure an endlesss stream of visitors." Contents include: Intro: Athens of the Renaissance / Imperial Disciplines / Contract with Mark / Declarations of Independence / The Lion's Wings / The Lion's Trad / Disciplines of Time / Disciplines of Work / Imperial Personnel / Doge / Patricians (Nobili) / Notables (Cittadini) / Golden Youth / Commoners (Popolani) / Women / Atists / Outsiders / Imperial Piety / Christ's Blood / Christ's Cross / Venetian Annunciations / The Vulnerable Mary / Mark: The Relic / Mark: The Life / War Saints: George & Theodore / Plague Saints / The Other Lion: Jerome's / Franciscan Learning / Dominican Learning / Book Learning / Learned Architecture: Codussi / Learned Architecture: Sanaovino. Palladio / Learned Sculture / Learned Politics / Learned History / A Farwell to Empire / Notes / Some Leading Dates / index. Any image directly beside this listing is the actual book and not a stock photo. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Hard Cover. Near Fine/NF. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.