L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, JANUARY 9, 2020 www.italoamericano.org 14 L'Italo-Americano I wonder if Johann Guten- berg, the creator of mova- ble type printing, had reali- zed — on that faithful day in 1450, when the fronti- spiece of the first printed Bible had come out of the press — the immense meaning his inven- tion was to have for Humanity. The printed word was to make knowledge and education available to all, it was to open the doors of spirituality, culture and entertainment to the whole world. Of course, the process was to last decades — centuries, even — but without that idea, without that first printed Bible, known as "the 42 lines Bible," and printed in full only between 1452 and 1455, the world today would be a very different place. The invention of printing in Mainz, Germany, was a pivotal moment in the development of Humankind, a step in which Italy had, in fact, an incredibly valuable role. Thanks to printing, producing books had become quicker and buying them chea- per, so much so that making books became a business: the printing industry developed in Europe between the end of the 15th and the beginning of the 16th century, and had Venice at its very heart. La Serenissima was the ninth European city to open a typography, with the first book fully "Made in Venice" printed in 1469 (it was Cicero's Epistolae ad Familiares): from then on, the Venetian printing industry grew bigger and bigger. Indeed, it is within this lively, exciting and incredibly modern context of almost six centuries ago that the adventure of Armenian printing in Venice began. Armenians, Christian Catholics, but with a creed sligh- tly different from that of the Catholics of Italy, came from a land, Armenia, that at the time was part of the Ottoman Empire. The Armenians had been thriving in Venice since the 13th century, certainly attracted by the many opportuni- ties offered by the city, but also by a supportive, familiar envi- ronment where the fragrances, sounds and tastes of the East mingled naturally with those of the West. Armenians loved Venice. And Venice loved the Armenians back: their culture, imbued as it was with the charm and knowledge of the East, but just as open and adaptable to integration, had made of them the perfect business companions and consultants for Venice's many East-bound commercial ventures. The Armenians, so, were essential to La Serenissima, but La Serenissima had been essen- tial to them, too, because it was from here — and thanks to the printing industry — that their culture was finally disseminated around Europe. But what's the story of Armenian printing in Venice, why did it become so important, why here? And — the greatest curiosity of all — what remains today, within the calli and canals of the city, of such a magnificent tradition? Well, in the Sestiere di Dorsoduro, at the very heart of the city's university quarter, is Palazzo Ca'Zenobio, home to Antica Stamperia Armena: an artisan company specialized in artistic pieces and books, entirely printed by hand, following ancient techniques, with the aim of carrying on a tradition made of beauty and marvels, but also of cultures embracing one another in a time so distant and ancient, yet so incredibly cosmo- polite. We of L'Italo-Americano had a chat with Samuel Baghdassarian, of Antica Stamperia Armena. With Samuel, we spoke about the rela- tionship between Venice and Armenian printing, about Antica Stamperia Armena, the Armenian printing tradition in the city, and some other curiosi- ties… Samuel begins our chat with some information about Venice and its ties with printing tradi- tion and Armenian culture. He explains that "Venice is incredi- bly important for Armenian cul- ture: the first book in Armenian typeface was printed here. Since then, and for the following 500 years, Venice was the heart of our culture's dissemination, because our texts were printed here and then sent around the world, to all Armenian communi- ties." "It was 1512 when the Urbatagirk was printed in La Serenissima. It's a little quirky volume, known also as the Book of Friday, a sort of popular knowledge handbook, filled with FRANCESCA BEZZONE The tradition of Venice's Antica Stamperia Armena goes all the way back to the invention of movable printing itself (Copyright: Antica Stamperia Armena) LIFE PEOPLE PLACES HERITAGE The Antica Stamperia Armena and the magic world of Venetian typography Continued to page 16

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