Nel Paese di Cuccagna

This article presents an etching from 1564 by the Venetian printmaker Nicolò Nelli that illustrates the vegetation, victuals and behaviour of the residents of the Land of Cockaigne. Delicious food grows on trees and roast meats fall from the sky, ready to be eaten. Mountains of cheese and rivers of wine are part of the topography of this imaginative place. The etching is interesting as an example of early modern print culture that combines text and image in an intermedial synthesis: the print includes 44 inscriptions describing the represented episodes. The first part of the article sheds light on the relationship between text and image and the development of an iconography informed by texts, images and festive culture. Various types of fruit and vegetables, meat and dairy products, and a multitude of delicious dishes are described in the inscriptions and visually represented. The second part analyses the material iconography of food oscillating between contemporary Venice and the social dynamics of the Land of Cockaigne.