Jan Morris reconstructs the whole of this glittering dominion in the form of a sea-voyage, travelling along the historic Venetian trade routes from Venice itself to Greece, Crete and Cyprus. It is a traveller's book, geographically arranged but wandering at will from the past to the present, evoking not only contemporary landscapes and sensations but also the characters, the emotions and the tumultuous events of the past. The first such work ever written about the Venetian
Stato da Mar
, it will prove an invaluable historical companion for visitors to Venice itself and for travellers through the lands the Doges once ruled. Jan Morris brings to the narrative the same romantic sweep and affectionate mass of detail that characterize her classic
Venice
and her trilogy about another empire,
Pax Brittania
.