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Cat. 18 detail: ROMA, 1950.
Cat. 7 detail: PIANO DI ROMA, No date [1901].
Cat. 23 detail: Italia 1:100,000 (Tav. 16), 1972.
| | MERIDIANO
Italy's Prime Meridian
December 2002 - February 2003
Exhibition and catalog text © A. Ceen / The Studium Urbis, 2002
Curated and written by Allan Ceen
Web version created by Michelle LaFoe
Translated by Alessandro Di Benedetto and Paolo Battinelli
To inquire about the exhibition, contact Allan Ceen.
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INTRODUCTION
Ma oggi la maggior parte delle nazioni europee, e gli Stati Uniti dell'America settentrionale, convennero di considerare primo meridiano quello che passa per loro principale osservatorio, e pei Francesi passa dall'osservatorio di Parigi, per gl'Inglesi quello di Greenwich, pegli Spagnuoli quello di Cadice, pegli Americani quello di Washington, pei Russi quello di Pietroburgo. I soli Tedeschi contano ancora la longitudine dell'Isola di Ferro. Gli Italiani doverebbero contarla dal meridiano del Campidoglio... F.C. Marmocchi, Grande Atlante di Geografia Universale, Milano, n.d. [ca. 1859], 45 tavole pił testo; p. Introduzione [n.b.: all the plates in this atlas use the Isola di Ferro prime meridian] The purpose of this exhibit is to use maps of Rome and Italy to illustrate the national prime meridian which passes through Monte Mario in Rome. In doing so, attention is being drawn not only to Monte Mario, but also to the Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma and the Museo Copernicano dell'Astronomia1, both housed in the Villa Mellini located near the top of that hill. The observatory's association with the prime meridian is direct since until recently the astronomic instrumentation used to determine it was housed there in a dedicated building-annex labelled "Primo Meridiano" on a plaque over the door.
Until the late 19th century, maps of Italy used a variety of prime meridians. 18th century maps favored the "Meridiano dell'Isola del Ferro (Isla del Hierro). This was a prime meridian based on the westernmost of the Canary Islands off the coast of North Africa, which was thought by ancient geographers to mark the western limit of the world, hence they reckoned longitude from it. In the 19th century some maps continued to rely on the Ferro meridian (Cat.1 & 4); others used the prime meridian of Paris (Cat.2), while yet others used the prime meridian of Rome (Cat.3). In 1884, President Chester A. Arthur of the United States called for an international conference in order to decide on a global prime meridian. Italy was among the 41 delegations which met in Washington DC, and settled on Greenwich as the international prime meridian. However this did not mean that Italian maps after that date always used this as the basis for longitude.
Various maps of the Papal States dating from the mid-19th century show the 0° meridian passing through Rome (Cat. 2). On 15 February 1870, seven months before Rome was captured by royal troops, thereby putting an end to the Pope's dominion over the city, the Pontifical government announced a plan for the geodetic survey of the Papal States. The triangulation was to be based on Monte Mario where a "stazione-osservatorio astronomico-geodetico fondamentale" was erected2. While the scheme was temporarily interrupted by the annexation of Rome to the Kingdom of Italy (20 September 1870), the principle of using Monte Mario as the starting point for the national geodetic grid was maintained by the new Italian government.
From then until the 1960s, most maps of Italy used the Monte Mario meridian as their 0° Longitude line. However the same maps made use of the international system of latitudes for the parallels. Monte Mario is 12°27'08.40" East of the Greenwich meridian, the international Prime meridian. The continued use of the Monte Mario meridian, in spite of Italy's adherence to the 1884 International Meridian Conference which settled on Greenwich as the international Prime meridian, is a significant indication of the young Italian state's desire to emphasize its unity and individuality. Longitudes in school atlases (see Cat. 6 & 12) were usually based on the Monte Mario meridian, thus helping perpetuate its use among the younger generations until relatively recently.
Following the prime meridian from Monte Mario on the maps exhibited is an instructive geography lesson. Heading south, after leaving land at Tor Vajanica, the line crosses the Tyrrenhian sea and grazes the west coast of Sicily at Marsala. Heading north, it passes just east of Perugia (the "heart of Italy"), bisects the sovereign state of San Marino and enters the Adriatic sea at the mouth of the Rubicon river. When it enters the Venetian lagoon we realize that this city is almost due north of Rome. The prime meridian crosses the border with Austria near the Passo di S. Croce di Comelico.
Even though it is no longer used as the base for modern maps, the Monte Mario Prime meridian remains an important symbol for Rome and Italy. At a meeting entitled UN SEGNO PER MONTE MARIO held in the Studium Urbis on 22 November 2002, a group of professionals from various backgrounds discussed ways and means of restoring cultural and scientific importance to the summit of Monte Mario. Participants were asked to consider the notion of placing an unspecified mark on Monte Mario, based on the national Prime meridian, which would focus attention on a series of possible interventions, including the reactivating of the Astronomical Museum which has been closed for the past three years. The current exhibit of maps is designed to further this endeavor.
(1) See p. 42 of this catalog.
(2) Attilio Mori, La Cartografia Ufficiale in Italia e l'Istituto Geografico Militare, Roma, 1922. Pp. 82-83.
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