article_snippet: the images reveal what life was like in the world’s most famous canal city before it was mobbed by hordes of gondola-riding tourists.
article_snippet: Some of the earliest photos of Venice – snapped in the 1840s and 1850s –
article_snippet: show an empty piazza in front of St Mark’s Basilica, the Ca’ d’Oro palace under restoration, and a Grand Canal with very little boat traffic.
article_snippet: The tranquil scenes are a far cry from modern-day Venice, which is visited by an estimated 10 million tourists a year.
article_snippet: This photo from the book shows Venice's tranquil Grand Canal and Ca' d'Oro palace under restoration in 1845 .
article_snippet: The Ducal Palace (right), Zecca di Venezia (left) and the St Mark's Campanile bell tower are pictured, circa 1851 .
article_snippet: A small group of people gathers at the piazza in front of St. Mark's Basilica in Venice in 1845; today the square is teeming with tourists .
article_snippet: possibly the earliest surviving photos of the French and Swiss Alps show animal heads (left) and Noah's vine carved into pillars at Ducal Palace, which is now a museum .
article_snippet: This photo shows Palazzo Gritti-Badoer with laundry hang drying on lines outside (circa 1846-1852)
article_snippet: Ducal Palace was a popular photography spot; this image shows a south-facing window looking out towards a lagoon (circa 1849-1852)
article_snippet: This photo moored boats in the harbour at Arona, Italy on a summer day in July 1858 .
article_snippet: Published by Bernard Quaritch, the 432-page book, Carrying Off the Palaces:
highlights_snippet: The 170-year-old photos snapped or collected by the influential art critic are some of the earliest of Venice .
  