Exploration, new worlds, maps and geographies will take centre stage at the presentation of L’Atlante di Ramusio by Andrea di Robilant, journalist, author and university lecturer.
This historical biography tells the story of Giovanni Battista Ramusio, a public official in Renaissance Venice who, in 1550, began publishing Delle navigationi et viaggi (Navigations and Travels), a collection of explorers’ first-hand accounts of their journeys. The work brought together accounts by Marco Polo, Niccolò Da Conti, Magellan, Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca and Giosafat Barbaro, as well as the Description of Africa. Its description of China includes the first reference to tea in European literature.
Ramusio helped transform the geographical understanding of his time, still largely rooted in Ptolemy’s work, bringing newly discovered worlds onto maps through explorers’ accounts and previously closely guarded information.
From Renaissance maps to twenty-first-century guidebooks, the evening will offer an Italian perspective on discovering and exploring new places. Emanuela De Angelis will then introduce My Abu Dhabi, an illustrated guide to the hotspots, places and neighbourhoods of this magnificent city, created together with Claudia Corsetti and Sara Quaggiotto.
Date: 19/11/2026, 6:30PM
Venue: Italian Cultural Institute Abu Dhabi
RSVP