Francesco da Mosto
Encyclopedia
Francesco da Mosto is an Italian
architect, author, historian, film maker and television presenter. He presented the three BBC 2 series Francesco's Venice
(2004) and Francesco's Italy: Top to Toe
(2006) where he explored the country in his Alfa Romeo Spider
and Francesco's Mediterranean Voyage
(Filmed 2007, Broadcast 2008) which sees him traveling from his home in Venice
to Istanbul
, visiting cities including Split
, Mostar
, Dubrovnik
and many more.
and his family has been part of the city's history since possibly as early as the fifth century. Originally, they were wine maker
s - the name da Mosto coming from the word "mosto" meaning grape must
(juice
from crushed grapes). Later, the family became traders
, explorers and politicians.
The family's previous Venice residence, the Ca' da Mosto
which can be seen from the Rialto
market by the Grand Canal was lost through marriage in the 17th century, when a female member of the family married four times, with each husband dying of natural causes – thus enabling her to become one of the wealthiest people in Venice
. Unfortunately for the da Mosto family, the childless widow had a falling out with them and left everything to a nephew
of her second husband, who went on to become Doge
.
Da Mosto is the younger son of Count Ranieri da Mosto and Contessa Maria Grazia Vanni d'Archirafi, who comes from a very old Sicilian
Noble Family who are the Dukes of Archirafi and include many noted Italian diplomats and bankers. A Roman Catholic, da Mosto took his first Holy Communion in the crypt of St Marks
. A few years later, he received the sacrament of Confirmation from the future Pope John Paul I
.
Da Mosto lives in his family home in Venice
, with his South Africa
n born wife Jane, his three children, and his parents. Francesco’s grandfather, Andrea, acquired the palazzo where the family live in 1919. When he moved in, the empty picture frames on the walls of the portego were filled with copies of family pictures, including a 15th-century map of the voyages of Alvise da Mosto, who discovered the Cape Verde
islands off the west of Africa
.
When BBC Two
decided to make a four-part series about the history of Venice
, they contacted Francesco to be the host. He has now presented three series for BBC Two
: Francesco's Venice, Francesco's Italy - from Top to Toe and Francesco's Mediterranean Voyage
, with accompanying books to the series. He has also published a book entitled Francesco's Kitchen.
In the Doctor Who Confidential
series 5 episode Death in Venice Francesco is featured explaining the history of Venice to Matt Smith.
, broadcast on BBC Two
, shows his journey from his home city of Venice
to his mother's origins in Sicily
. This series has 4 episodes: "The Romantic North", "The Garden of Italy", "The Heart of Italy", and "The Land of My Mother". In the first episode, he visits the Romeo and Juliet
balcony in Verona, and the city of Milan
. During episode two, he visits Lucca
and Florence
. During episode 3, he visits Rome
and Naples
. In the final episode, he visits Sicily, where there is an emotional reunion with his family.
Italian people
The Italian people are an ethnic group that share a common Italian culture, ancestry and speak the Italian language as a mother tongue. Within Italy, Italians are defined by citizenship, regardless of ancestry or country of residence , and are distinguished from people...
architect, author, historian, film maker and television presenter. He presented the three BBC 2 series Francesco's Venice
Francesco's Venice
Francesco's Venice was a four part BBC television documentary series hosted by Francesco da Mosto and first broadcast on BBC2 in 2004. The series follows da Mosto as he explores the history of Venice, beginning with its creation in the 5th century and concluding in the modern era...
(2004) and Francesco's Italy: Top to Toe
Francesco's Italy: Top to Toe
Francesco's Italy: Top to Toe was a four part BBC television series hosted by Francesco da Mosto and originally shown on BBC2 from 18 June to 2 July 2006...
(2006) where he explored the country in his Alfa Romeo Spider
Alfa Romeo Spider
The Alfa Romeo Spider is a roadster produced by the Italian manufacturer Alfa Romeo from 1966 to 1993 . Widely regarded as a design classic, it remained in production for almost three decades with only minor aesthetic and mechanical changes...
and Francesco's Mediterranean Voyage
Francesco's Mediterranean Voyage
Francesco's Mediterranean Voyage is a BBC Television documentary series first aired in 2008. It follows Venetian architect Francesco da Mosto as he follows the historical Venetian trading route from Venice through the Adriatic Sea, Corinth Canal, Aegean Sea and Dardanelles to Istanbul. This route...
(Filmed 2007, Broadcast 2008) which sees him traveling from his home in Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
to Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, visiting cities including Split
Split (city)
Split is a Mediterranean city on the eastern shores of the Adriatic Sea, centered around the ancient Roman Palace of the Emperor Diocletian and its wide port bay. With a population of 178,192 citizens, and a metropolitan area numbering up to 467,899, Split is by far the largest Dalmatian city and...
, Mostar
Mostar
Mostar is a city and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the largest and one of the most important cities in the Herzegovina region and the center of the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation. Mostar is situated on the Neretva river and is the fifth-largest city in the country...
, Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik is a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea coast, positioned at the terminal end of the Isthmus of Dubrovnik. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva county. Its total population is 42,641...
and many more.
Biography
Da Mosto was born in VeniceVenice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
and his family has been part of the city's history since possibly as early as the fifth century. Originally, they were wine maker
Winemaking
Winemaking, or vinification, is the production of wine, starting with selection of the grapes or other produce and ending with bottling the finished wine. Although most wine is made from grapes, it may also be made from other fruit or non-toxic plant material...
s - the name da Mosto coming from the word "mosto" meaning grape must
Must
Must is freshly pressed fruit juice that contains the skins, seeds, and stems of the fruit. The solid portion of the must is called pomace; it typically makes up 7%–23% of the total weight of the must. Making must is the first step in winemaking...
(juice
Juice
Juice is the liquid that is naturally contained in fruit or vegetable tissue.Juice is prepared by mechanically squeezing or macerating fruit or vegetable flesh without the application of heat or solvents. For example, orange juice is the liquid extract of the fruit of the orange tree...
from crushed grapes). Later, the family became traders
Merchant
A merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...
, explorers and politicians.
The family's previous Venice residence, the Ca' da Mosto
Ca' da Mosto
The Ca' da Mosto is a thirteenth-century palace in Venice, northern Italy, the oldest building on the Grand Canal. It is in the Veneto-Byzantine style, with high narrow arches and distinctive capitals.-History:...
which can be seen from the Rialto
Rialto
The Rialto is and has been for many centuries the financial and commercial centre of Venice. It is an area of the San Polo sestiere of Venice, Italy, also known for its markets and for the Rialto Bridge across the Grand Canal....
market by the Grand Canal was lost through marriage in the 17th century, when a female member of the family married four times, with each husband dying of natural causes – thus enabling her to become one of the wealthiest people in Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
. Unfortunately for the da Mosto family, the childless widow had a falling out with them and left everything to a nephew
Nephew
Nephew is a son of one's sibling or sibling-in-law, and niece is a daughter of one's sibling or a sibling-in-law. Sons and daughters of siblings-in-law are also informally referred to as nephews and nieces respectively, even though there is no blood relation...
of her second husband, who went on to become Doge
Doge of Venice
The Doge of Venice , often mistranslated Duke was the chief magistrate and leader of the Most Serene Republic of Venice for over a thousand years. Doges of Venice were elected for life by the city-state's aristocracy. Commonly the person selected as Doge was the shrewdest elder in the city...
.
Da Mosto is the younger son of Count Ranieri da Mosto and Contessa Maria Grazia Vanni d'Archirafi, who comes from a very old Sicilian
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
Noble Family who are the Dukes of Archirafi and include many noted Italian diplomats and bankers. A Roman Catholic, da Mosto took his first Holy Communion in the crypt of St Marks
St Mark's Basilica
The Patriarchal Cathedral Basilica of Saint Mark is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Venice, northern Italy. It is the most famous of the city's churches and one of the best known examples of Byzantine architecture...
. A few years later, he received the sacrament of Confirmation from the future Pope John Paul I
Pope John Paul I
John Paul I , born Albino Luciani, , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and as Sovereign of Vatican City from 26 August 1978 until his death 33 days later. His reign is among the shortest in papal history, resulting in the most recent Year of Three Popes...
.
Da Mosto lives in his family home in Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, with his South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
n born wife Jane, his three children, and his parents. Francesco’s grandfather, Andrea, acquired the palazzo where the family live in 1919. When he moved in, the empty picture frames on the walls of the portego were filled with copies of family pictures, including a 15th-century map of the voyages of Alvise da Mosto, who discovered the Cape Verde
Cape Verde
The Republic of Cape Verde is an island country, spanning an archipelago of 10 islands located in the central Atlantic Ocean, 570 kilometres off the coast of Western Africa...
islands off the west of Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
.
When BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
decided to make a four-part series about the history of Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, they contacted Francesco to be the host. He has now presented three series for BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
: Francesco's Venice, Francesco's Italy - from Top to Toe and Francesco's Mediterranean Voyage
Francesco's Mediterranean Voyage
Francesco's Mediterranean Voyage is a BBC Television documentary series first aired in 2008. It follows Venetian architect Francesco da Mosto as he follows the historical Venetian trading route from Venice through the Adriatic Sea, Corinth Canal, Aegean Sea and Dardanelles to Istanbul. This route...
, with accompanying books to the series. He has also published a book entitled Francesco's Kitchen.
In the Doctor Who Confidential
Doctor Who Confidential
Doctor Who Confidential is a documentary series created by the British Broadcasting Corporation to complement the revival of the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Each episode was broadcast on BBC Three on Saturdays, immediately after the broadcast of the weekly...
series 5 episode Death in Venice Francesco is featured explaining the history of Venice to Matt Smith.
Francesco's Italy: Top to Toe
Da Mosto's series Francesco's Italy: Top to ToeFrancesco's Italy: Top to Toe
Francesco's Italy: Top to Toe was a four part BBC television series hosted by Francesco da Mosto and originally shown on BBC2 from 18 June to 2 July 2006...
, broadcast on BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
, shows his journey from his home city of Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
to his mother's origins in Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
. This series has 4 episodes: "The Romantic North", "The Garden of Italy", "The Heart of Italy", and "The Land of My Mother". In the first episode, he visits the Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written early in the career of playwright William Shakespeare about two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately unite their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular archetypal stories of young, teenage lovers.Romeo and Juliet belongs to a...
balcony in Verona, and the city of Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
. During episode two, he visits Lucca
Lucca
Lucca is a city and comune in Tuscany, central Italy, situated on the river Serchio in a fertile plainnear the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Lucca...
and Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
. During episode 3, he visits Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
and Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
. In the final episode, he visits Sicily, where there is an emotional reunion with his family.
External links
- "Inside my Palazzo", interview with da Mosto from The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
online, October 17, 2004 - Interview with The Lady (magazine)The Lady (magazine)The Lady is Britain's oldest weekly women's magazine. It has been in continuous publication since 1885 and is based in London. It is particularly notable for its classified advertisements for domestic service and child care; it also has extensive listings of holiday properties.The magazine was...
, October, 2004 - da Mosto takes part in a BBC Radio 4BBC Radio 4BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
discussion programme, MidweekMidweekMidWeek is a weekly United States tabloid shopper and advertisement periodical published in Honolulu, Hawaii and distributed throughout on the Islands of Oahu and Kauai. It is owned by Black Press and is a sister publication of the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.- History :The shopper started in 1984 to...
, June 7, 2006 - Francesco's bella Italia, article on the series Francesco's Italy: Top to Toe by Francesco da Mosto, The Mail on SundayDaily MailThe Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
, June 12, 2006