A unique portrait of nineteenth-century Italy as seen through the eyes of the first generation of British photographers This book examines the ways in which the new medium of photography influenced the British experience, appreciation, and perception of Italy in the nineteenth century. Setting photography within a long history of image making-beginning with the eighteenth-century Grand Tour and transformed by the inventions of William Henry Fox Talbot and Louis Daguerre-this beautifully illustrated book features many previously unpublished images alongside the work of well-known photographers. The sixteen essays in this volume explore photography as a vehicle for visual translation and cultural exchange. Distributed for the Yale Center for British Art

Founded in 1947 on the basis of the spirit of humanism , the Magnum ph oto agen cy has mostly focused its gaze on a wor ld in times of unrest, collapsing social structures and polarisi n g p oliti cs . This volume is being published to mark the 70 th birthday of th e agency . W ith a selection of iconic pictures f ro m the archive of the agency , it illuminates another of the basic pil lars upon which Magnum rests : community . The community is marked by conflicts and ruptures, and yet we cling to the sometimes n ostalgi c - seeming idea of the harmoni ous coexistence of man. All this is shown in the world - famous photos from the M agnum a rchi v e - from pictures of dramati c events of world history to quiet , private insights into our daily lives . Over 100 photos from the past 70 years have been selected f or this volume . They are pictures which belong to our c olle c tive memory and which testify to the power of photography . They all illustrate the basic aim of Magnum : to create influential works which enlighten and help to create a better world .