Tra tombe e rovine. Napoli e dintorni nell’opera di Józef Ignacy Kraszewski

In 1858 Józef Ignacy Kraszewski accomplished a trip around Italy, which was described in his travel diary Kartki z podróży 1858-1864 (Travel pages 1858-1864). Kraszewski’s aims as an artist and art critic were to deepen his theoretical knowledge, to see the Antique Rome, since he was fascinated by archaeology and history, and visit Dante’s city, because he had translated The Divine Comedy around 1864. Thanks to his travels, Italy became a more familiar and sensitive place to read the signs of the past. The ruins of Herculaneum and Pompeii tell the story of an ancient past, not only offering an investigation into the meaning of existence, but also helping to grasp the meaning and direction of modern changes.