c.1928 Aquileia Italy Franz Lenhart Stained Glass ENIT Italian Travel

Date: c.1928 
Artist: Lenhart, Franz  
Size (in): 39.75" x 26"
Size (cm): 101 x 66
Condition: B
Linen Backed: Yes 

This vintage original poster promoting the historic city of Aquileia in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of Northeastern Italy was designed by Franz Lenhart and issued by ENIT, the official Italian governmental tourism authority, in the late 1920s.  For this poster Lenhart renders an intricate stained-glass aesthetic, defined by heavy, bold black outlines separating vibrant fragments of color. A raised hand firmly grips an ornate golden cross adorned with colorful jewel-like geometric accents against the soaring campanile of the Basilica Patriarcale di Santa Maria Assunta, Aquileia’s principal church.   

While Aquileia is home to only some 3,300 residents today, in classical antiquity it was a major Roman city with an estimated population of almost 100,000.   It also holds the distinction of being the first city on the Italian Peninsula to be sacked by Attila the Hun in year 452.  This lower margin indicates the printer as Richter & C., Napoli.  

This vintage original poster has been professionally conservation mounted to linen.   A tear of a few inches without paper loss on the bottom edge and small areas of loss in the margins on the upper corner tips were expertly repaired during the linen backing processes along with some minor touchup.  The original colors are strongly retained and the poster displays beautifully.  Overall condition is very good.