Bagni di Pisa (San Giuliano)
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| Casa Prinni, the apartment Shelley rented
from August to October of 1820, is now a bank
in the tiny village of San Giuliano.
Northwest of Pisa, San Giuliano is on route
12, just south of the A11 Lucca exit. It is
roughly a half-block from the spa. When we
took these pictures, the town was enjoying a
local fair—much like the market days
and fairs held in Shelley's time. Such events
could be a bit distracting at times; Richard
Holmes notes in Shelley: The Pursuit
that during the festival of St. Bartholomew,
when Shelley attempted a public reading of
one of his more political odes, he was
interrupted by the "loud grunting and
squealing of pigs brought in for sale at the
fair." When the "farmyard noises threatened
to drown out the whole recitation . . .
Shelley broke off his reading with a laugh"
(609). |
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| The house, number 4, is marked with a
plaque. The spa still exists and is popular
with both locals and visitors from Pisa. |
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