Esposizione Internazionale di Torino 1911 - Padiglione dell'Uruguay

Catalog Level
Items (Cataloging Focus)

Title Proper/Title Text
Esposizione Internazionale di Torino 1911 - Padiglione dell'Uruguay

Date of Publication/Creation Date
1911 ca.

Descriptive Note Text

This black-and-white postcard shows the Uruguayan national pavilion at the 1911 Turin International Exhibition, seen from across the Po. The top left reads “Esposizione Internazionale Torino 1911," and the top right identifies the subject as “Padiglione dell’Uraguay.” The spelling “Uraguay” (rather than “Uruguay”) is a variant that turns up in period Italian sources.

The pavilion is a long, symmetrical building in an exuberant eclectic style. The center is a tall entrance block with a large arched, glazed opening, crowned by a ribbed dome topped with a finial and flanked by smaller turrets with pinnacles. Long wings extend to either side, with regular rows of tall windows and heavily ornamented cornices, ending in end pavilions with small domes and lanterns. On the far right, a more elaborate corner tower rises with its own cupola. Flags fly from tall poles above the roofline. The whole structure sits on a raised, balustraded terrace running along the riverbank, with steps leading down toward the water.

A canopied vaporino carrying passengers crosses in front of the pavilion, with a large flag (the Italian tricolor with the Savoy cross) at its stern. Lettering on the hull reads “CANTIERI BAGLIETTO VARAZZE,” the Baglietto boatyard in Varazze, Liguria, which built launches like those used for river service during the exhibition. 

Current Repository/Geographic Location
Cristina Della Coletta Private Collection (San Diego, USA)

Current Repository Numbers
CDC-PC-PLAM-0012