La Sezione Svizzera
Catalog Level
Items (Cataloging Focus)
Title Proper/Title Text
La Sezione Svizzera
Date of Publication/Creation Date
July-December, 1911
Inscription Language
Italian (Language)
Related Built Environment Objects
Related Components
Descriptive Note Text
This photograph reproduced “La Sezione Svizzera” (The Swiss Section) at the Exposition.
A shallow-pitched roof of diagonal lattice trusses lets in diffuse skylight. Along the right side, slender lattice-iron columns hold up a mezzanine gallery with X-braced railings, decorated with garland festoons and lined with framed panels, display boards, and showcases. In the right foreground, two heavy I-beams run across the image on a lattice frame. They appear to be the rails of an overhead traveling crane, a common working feature of machinery halls and often an exhibit in its own right.
Swiss identity is everywhere. A large hanging banner with the white cross dominates the upper left, a sign reading “SUISSE” spans the central aisle, and clusters of small Swiss-cross flags decorate the gallery columns at right. Other sections are visible further back. A very large pocket-watch-style clock with Roman numerals hangs from the gallery at upper right, topped by a decorative bow and crown. It works as both a showpiece of Swiss horology and a functional hall clock.
The left half of the floor is crowded with machine tools: lathes, drill presses, presses, and a large flywheel. Most are set on low platforms in rows along the aisle. In the bottom-left foreground is the curved housing of a very large dynamo or generator, and another round generator casing sits in the middle distance. The right side holds heating equipment: stacks of cast-iron radiators in many sizes, cylindrical boilers with access ladders and piping, and stove- or furnace-like cabinets. Ornamental arched lamp standards with hanging globe lamps and small potted trees line the main aisle and soften the industrial setting. An octagonal glass display case sits at lower right.
The image presents Switzerland as a modern industrial nation through precision machinery, electrical engineering, heating technology, and watchmaking.
Related Work/Label Identification
This photograph was published in the Exposition's Giornale Ufficiale n°27, July-December, 1911, 433.
Related Archival Material
Current Repository/Geographic Location
Cristina Della Coletta Private Collection (San Diego, USA)
Current Repository Numbers
CDC-MA-GUIL-0001-433-2