detail from the Villa Albani
Italy has always been famous for its classical monuments and, since the Renaissance, for its gardens too. Both attracted tourists in growing numbers, particularly as the Grand Tour became an essential part of the education of almost every young northern European member of the elite.
Aristocratic or not tourists have always wanted souvenirs. Some wanted to take home antique sculptures, others to have their portraits painted in Italian settings by Italian artists, but others less wealthy had to be content with buying prints, and so the production of engravings of the major sites, towns and landscapes became a lucrative business.
The greatest exponent of these views – or vedute as they are known – was Giovanni Battista Piranesi who possessed “one of the most imaginative minds ever to have brooded on the visual arts”.
detail of the Villa Pamphili
There is a long history of philanthropic and/or paternalistic industrialists providing recreational and garden space for their employers. We’ve all heard of Bourneville, Port Sunlight and Saltaire, while Helena Chance’s recent book 
One subject that always seems to raise a lot of interest on the courses I run about the history of gardens is the mediaeval garden. Although most of us will have a vague picture of what we think they were like, the quest for the reality of mediaeval gardens and green open spaces is tantalising.
Last week’s introductory post about Percy Cane – 
The Garden History Blog 
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