Mantua
2 of the 6 encyclopedias on this shelf carry an entry for Mantua. Both are reproduced below, so you can see where they agree and where they differ.
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a town of northern Italy, capital of a province of same name, on the Mincio, 21 miles S. W. of Verona, and 37 N. E. of Cremona. It is partly on two islands formed by the waters of the Mincio, and partly on the mainland. Mantua is both by nature and art one of the strongest places in Europe; it is entered by bridges, flanked with redoubts, and is built on a plain of tolerable regularity, divided by a canal into two nearly equal parts. Most of the streets are broad, regular, and well paved; the houses are of stone, and in general well built; and the public squares both spacious and elegant. Of the latter, the most noted is the Piazza di Virgilio, used as a promenade. In its center stands Vergil's monument, a column of marble. The principal public edifices at Mantua are the cathedral; the Corte, with its hall; the Palazzo della Giustizia; the palace of the Gonzaga family, and the one which, from its shape, bears the singular name of the Palazzo di T; the university buildings, the arsenal, the Jewish synagogue, and the public library, containing over 80,- 000 volumes. Mantua contains likewise several valuable collections of paintings, and a gallery of antiquities belonging to the Academy of Arts and Sciences. Manufactures silk, woolen and linen fabrics, etc. Mantua claims an antiquity equal to that of Rome. It passed under the Roman power 197 B. C., and was the birthplace of Vergil, 70 b. C. After numerous reverses of fortune, Mantua passed into the hands of Louis I., Duke of Gonzaga, in 1328, and under his rule attained great importance. It continued in the Gonzaga family till 1708, when it was taken by the Austrians. It was taken by Napoleon I. in 1796, and erected into the chief town of the department of the Mincio, but was restored to Austria in 1814. By the treaty of Zurich, in 1859, Mantua and Peschiera were the only towns of Lombardy left to the house of Austria, and these were surrendered in October, 1866. Pop. about 35,000.
1000 Classical Characters (1900)
A town in Gallia Transpadana, on an island in the river Mincius, was not a place of importance, but is celebrated because Vergil, who was born at the neighboring village of Andes, regarded Mantua as his birthplace.
What Has Changed in the Last Century
Collier's in 1921 still described Mantua as "both by nature and art one of the strongest places in Europe," entered by bridges flanked with redoubts "Quadrilateral" fortress that Austria clung to until 1866; those defences are gone, and the marshy lakes formed by the Mincio are now a protected park rather than a moat. The Gonzaga city Collier's admired is today valued precisely for its art: Mantua and nearby Sabbioneta were inscribed together on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2008, and the "Palazzo di T" of the old entry is now universally known as the Palazzo Te, Giulio Romano's 1520s villa and one of the touchstones of Mannerist architecture. The town was Italian Capital of Culture in 2016; its population, given as "about 35,000," is now roughly 46,000. The 2012 Emilia earthquakes damaged the Palazzo Ducale and other monuments, forcing years of restoration.
Written for this edition, 2026.