If Venice Dies

What is Venice worth? To whom does this urban treasure belong? This eloquent book by the internationally renowned art historian Salvatore Settis urgently poses these questions, igniting a new debate about the Pearl of the Adriatic and cultural patrimony at large. Venetians are increasingly abandoning their hometown - there s now only one resident for every 140 visitors and Venice s fragile fate has become emblematic of the future of historic cities everywhere as it capitulates to tourists and those who profit from them. In If Venice Dies, a fiery blend of history and cultural analysis, Settis argues that hit-and-run visitors are turning landmark urban setting into shopping malls and theme parks. He warns Western civilisation s prime achievements face impending ruin from mass tourism and global cultural homogenisation. This is passionate plea to secure Venice s future, written with consummate authority, wide-ranging erudition, and elan.