Corso del Po per la Lombardia - Cerruti

📜 Description
Large engraved map depicting the course of the River Po through Lombardy, published in Rome in 1703 by Domenico De Rossi after a cartographic design by A. Cerruti and engraved by A. Barbey. The composition develops across four joined sheets and represents the hydrographic system of Northern Italy from the Alpine regions to the Adriatic Sea, according to a scientific and topographical layout characteristic of early eighteenth-century Italian cartography. The map highlights the river network, territorial divisions, mountain ranges, urban centres, coastal profiles and the complex morphology of the Po Valley. The engraved linework, analytical and highly refined, provides a remarkably detailed and orderly reading of the territory, balancing documentary precision with formal elegance. Representative of the finest Italian cartographic production of the period, the work belongs to the tradition of scientific and hydrographic mapping and stands as a significant testimony to the study, control and representation of the Po river system in the early modern era.

📚 Historical-Artistic Note
A. Cerruti belongs to the group of cartographers active in Italy between the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, distinguished by particular attention to territorial and hydrographic representation. The engraving executed by A. Barbey contributes to the clarity and precision of the overall cartographic structure. The work was published by Domenico De Rossi, one of the most important Roman publishers of maps, prints and topographical works of the period, renowned for the dissemination of scientifically rigorous and visually refined engravings. Maps of this type, intended for both technical and educated audiences, testify to the growing interest in the systematic representation of waterways, infrastructures and territorial organisation within modern European cartography.

🧾 Technical Details
Title: Corso del Po per la Lombardia
Type: Original engraved map
Author / Cartographer: A. Cerruti
Engraver: A. Barbey
Publisher: Domenico De Rossi
Place: Rome
Period: 1703
Material: Paper
Technique: Copperplate engraving / etching
Colouring: Contemporary hand colouring to the borders
Composition: Complete map on four sheets
Decoration: Hydrographic cartographic layout with topographical and territorial details
Dimensions: each sheet 46.5 × 59 cm; engraved area each sheet 43 × 57 cm

🔍 Condition Report
Sheets in excellent overall condition. No significant defects noted. Well-inked and fully legible engraved surfaces. Contemporary hand colouring preserved. Blank versos.