MARIO BORGONI (1869-1936) CINQUANTENARIO / DEL PLEBISCITO MERIDIONALE. 1910. 77x55 1/4 inches. Stab. Richter & Co., Naples. Condition B+: discoloration and restored losses along vertical and horizontal folds; restored losses at edges. Two sheets. A patriotic image promoting the 50th anniversary celebrations of two important dates in the history of Italian unification. On September 7, 1860, Garibaldi entered Naples with an "army," which he led in the name of King Vittorio Emmanuel II, freeing the city from Bourbon control. On October 21, 1860, the peoples of Sicily held a plebiscite, voting to unite with the Northern Italian states; thus was born the Kingdom of Italy. Borgoni's stirring allegory depicts Italia carrying the Italian flag and a torch. She is flanked on one side by the red shirts (the soldiers fighting with Garibaldi) and on the other by the Naples skyline with Mount Vesuvius in the background. The rather lengthy text elaborates on the historical importance of the two dates. Bolaffi p. 30, Mele 71, Manifesto 45.
