A GREAT BOOK OF BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOS FROM THE 1966 RIVER ARNO FLOOD THAT DEVASTATED FLORENCE AND ITS ART COLLECTIONS
Anyone who has marveled at the treasures in the Uffizi, Basilica Santa Croce or dozens of other museums and churches in Florence will be interested in this small, 80-page book of photos of the devastation and recovery.
David Lees died in 2004, in his hillside home overlooking beautiful Firenze.
Four decades earlier, on assignment for Life Magazine, he chronicled the November 4 1966 flood that sent the Arno's waters crashing into ancient Florence at 40 miles per hour.
Human beings lost their lives in the tragedy and thousands upon thousands of rare books and priceless art treasures were damaged beyond comprehension.
Thankfully, hundreds of people young and old -- from Tuscany, from Italy, from all over the world -- went to Florence to help recover waterlogged books and masterpieces.
This book, in stark photographs, tells their stories.
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