Lichenotheca Veneta

Vittore Trevisan published in 1869 the Lichenotheca Veneta, a collection of lichens that, like other exsiccata collections, was born as a reference herbarium for scholars of the time. We do not know how many copies came out of the Sante Pozzato Typography in Bassano but it seems they were a very limited number, which the author distributed to some selected colleagues and a few scientific institutions. Currently, only the copy of the Museum of Natural History of Venice is known for sure to be complete, although this is possible also for the one preserved in the Cryptogamic Herbarium of the University of Modena. According to our knowledge, there is only another existing copy, stored at the Italian Central Herbarium of the University of Florence, which is however partial.
As evidenced by the handwritten notes added on the covers of the volumes, the Venetian copy was given by Trevisan to the Istituto Veneto di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti, presumably in 1877; from here it was subsequently deposited, in 1923, at the Museum of Natural History, together with the other scientific collections of the Institute.
The collection consists of eight files organized in four volumes. Covers are made of cardboard and have the title page printed. The sheets, measuring 30x21 cm, were originally collected in paper pockets, today only partially preserved. It contains a total of 268 samples representing 74 genera and 197 species, and among these 119 varieties and forms. In the author’s intentions it should have been the first of several series, since “Series I” is specified in the title of the work, but the following ones have never been published.
The specimens are divided into volumes according to the date of publication: Vol. I, April 1869 (78 samples); Vol. II, June 1869 (68 samples); Vol. III, August 1869 (61 samples); Vol. IV, October 1869 (61 samples). The samples are all glued on the sheets, in some cases inside paper envelopes, many with the relative substrate (soil, bark, rock); each one has a printed label with the nomenclature, synonyms, habitat and, almost always, the place or area of origin.
Except for a few specimens that Trevisan received from friends and correspondents, the lichens were almost all collected by the author “in the Venetian provinces”, an area which was not corresponding with today’s geographical extension of the Veneto but also included the current Friuli Venezia Giulia and the province of Mantua. The main areas of origin of the samples are: Altopiano dei Sette Comuni, surroundings of Bassano del Grappa and Recoaro Terme, Euganean Hills and Berici Hills, Montello and Colli Trevigiani, Lessini Mountains, Cadore, Vette Feltrine, Monte Grappa, Padua, Carnic Alps, San Daniele del Friuli, Castel d’Ario and, generally, provinces of Vicenza, Padua, Verona, Treviso and Belluno. Included in the collection are also some specimens coming from outside the Venetian area: a sample was collected in Sicily on Mount Etna while four are exotic and come from the island of Mauritius and from Mexico. Finally, for 25 samples there is no precise indication of the locality or area of origin.