Genoa | Italy | Via XX Settembre | Week 26

Genoa [italian: Genova; latin, german: Genua; french: Gênes], oldest references from the 6th century BC as (a probably greek city) Stalia in Liguria but might have been inhabited much earlier. Lies on the mediterranean coast at the centre of the ligurian coastal arch, south of Milan and in the centre of a triangle with Marseille (west, 300 km), Zürich (north, 325 km) and Rome (southeast, 400km). 6th largest city in Italy, 69th largest city in europe.

Population: 587.000 [2015] | 679.000 [1991] | 591.000 [1931] | 378.000 [1901]

Genoa, also called La Superba (the proud one), is especially known for its glorious past. The Romans renamed it Genua and gave it municipal rights. The city had its golden times as the Maritime Republic of Genoa, especially from the 12th to the end of the 14th century. During that time it was one of the leading maritime powers in the Mediterranean with colonies in the Middle East, the Aegean, Sicily and Northern Africa. It controlled Liguria, Piedmont, Sardinia, Corsica and Nice and had trade outposts in many places, especially in Spain and Constantinople. It had another golden time from the 16th century to the French Revolution when the genoese banks collaborated closely with the spanish crown. A famous son of the city was Christopher Columbus, born here in 1451. During the 19th and 20th century Genoa established itself as a ship-building and industrial powerhouse of Italy. Its Palazzi dei Rolli and the Le Strade Nuove („the new streets“) gave the city an UNESCO world heritage site and in 2004 it was a european capital of culture.

Our streetline presents a section of the  southside of Via XX Settembre in Genoa. This major east-west street from the city centre (at Piazza de Ferrari) towards the East and San Vincenzo developed in the late 19th century. The street is crossed by the bridge Ponte Monumentale in its middle, which we can see at the left edge. It is a major shopping and promenading street of the Genoese and lined by representative buildings from the period, especially some of the finest Art Nouveau buildings in the region.

Click for larger view:

Street view Streetline Streetscape Genoa Genova Italy Italia

For classic view and more infos about the place:

Via XX Settembre Genoa Genova Italy Italia

We documented many more streets and places in Genoa. Find some unfinnished examples below.

Strada Nuova Palazzi dei Rolli Genova Genoa

Via Garibaldi | Strada Nuova

Piazza Caricamento Genoa Genua

Piazza Caricamento

Palazzo San Giorgio Genoa Italy Sights

Palazzo San Giorgio

Barcelona | Spain | Passeig de Gracia | Week 24

Barcelona [latin: Barcino; greek: Varkelóni] founded by the Laietani as Barkeno sometime before 250 BC, later restructured by the Carthaginians and Romans. Lies on the mediterranean coast in north-east spain, about 500 km east of Madrid, 900 km south of Paris and 300 km south-west of Marseille. Second largest city in Spain and 17th largest city in europe.

Population: 1.605.000 (2015) | 1.707.000 (1990) | 1.006.000 (1930) | 544.000 (1900)

Barcelona is the capital of the autonomous spanish region Catalonia and its economic centre. It has always played an important rule as a major harbour on the mediterranean coast and is the seat of the Union for the Mediterranean, an organization of european, african and arabian countries. In 1992 it hosted the Olympic Games and it is listed as a UNESCO world heritage site with works by the modernisme architects Antoni Gaudí and Lluís Domènech i Montaner. Gaudís magnum opus, the Basilica Sagrada Familia which was started in 1882 and is scheduled to be finnished in 2026, is a major tourist attraction of europe.

The Passeig de Gràcia is regarded the most elegant street of Barcelona and runs through the Eixample from the Placa de Catalunya in the south to the Gràcia district in the north. Here the leading modernisme architects created several representative buildings in the later 19th and early 20th century. Amongst the architects that worked on this street block we find Lluís Domènech i Montaner with the Casa Lleó-Morera at the left edge, Antoni Gaudí with the famous Casa Batlló, the second last on the right and Josep Puig i Cadafalch with the Casa Amatller on its left side. With all these architects and their distinct styles so close to each other this street block was later famously called the Mansana de la Discordia – meaning at the same time Apple or Block of discord and referencing greek mythology in view of this built competition of Modernisme. Find more infos and detail views in our archive or look for other Barcelona streetlines.

Click for larger view:

Panorama Casa Batllo Passeig de Gracia Amatllo

For classic view and further details visit the archive (german link):

Casa Batllo Antoni Gaudi Barcelona Espana

Another published streetline view of Barcelona is the Placa Reial:

Placa Reial Barcelona

We documented more than 50 streets and places in Barcelona. Find some unfinnished examples below.

Barcelona Via Laietana Architecture Photography

Via Laietana, part of this longer panorama:

Barcelona Via Laietana streetline

Via Laietana

Architecture Barcelona Ronda de la Universitat

Ronda de la Universitat

Streetline Architekturfotografie Spanien Katalonien

Plaza del Sol

Parroquia de Christo Rey Church Barcelona

Parroquia De Cristo Rey