Grand Duchy of Tuscany Leopold II Italy Document

Description

The ancient, original document of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany framed, in recent times, by a skilled Florentine master craftsman … more The ancient, original document of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany framed, in recent times, by a skilled Florentine master craftsman who used a frame in precious wood and painted gold. The "Notification" was a public notice issued by the authority to bring to the attention of the population or of the institutions or persons concerned a legislative situation, an administrative act, or a declaration of intent by the authority itself. In 1838 (the year of our document) Italy, still divided into Kingdoms, States, Ducats, was pervaded by a certain form of reformism; the different dukes, princes, etc. flaunting modernism, various programs begin to develop the economy, make the administration efficient, change some laws, intervene in the territory with infrastructures, such as roads, canals, and railways. For this reason, more professionalism, experience, and technical preparation were required to all operators who had to contribute to this change. In the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, the Grand Duke Leopold II of Habsburg-Lorraine reigned from 1824, whose government immediately signaled itself for an intense policy of public works, land reclamation, expansion of ports, construction of railways, so much so that Tuscany represented an island of freedom and progress among other Italian states. Our document is a valid and important testimony of this wave of modernism. In the "Notification", Mr. Alessandro Manetti, Director of the Body of Water and Road Engineers, to fulfill the orders of the Grand Duke, requires, in addition to the requisites necessary for admission to the competitions of the aforementioned Corps, the Degree of Doctor of Physical and Mathematical Sciences to be obtained at the University of Pisa or Siena (the two most prestigious universities in Tuscany at that time). The document was printed in Florence in the Stamperia Granducale on September 26, 1838, and bears the coat of arms of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. Measures width cm.59, height cm.69, depth cm.3. less