Magnus Edizioni was established in 1977 as a publishing house specialising in high-quality photographic books.
The new company's very first project was a success, and became one of the most extraordinary publishing phenomena of recent years. It was ESSERE VENEZIA, a photographic travel book which in 1978 was awarded the International Prize at Arles as the "best photographic book of the year".
The award vindicated the Magnus Edizioni editorial strategy, providing a firm direction for the future: the promotion of images as an exciting, immediate and universally intelligible medium of communication. Appreciation for this approach was not slow in arriving. In 1985, Magnus Edizioni won: the Tevere literary prize for ROME MIRROR OF THE CENTURIES by Marton and D'Onofrio; the Gargano prize awarded by the Puglia regional authority for PUGLIA by Mario De Biasi; and the Culture Prize of Italy's Presidency of the Council of Ministers.
1986 saw the birth of a prestigious new collection of art works offering an authoritative text accompanied by stupendous, specially commissioned illustrations. The first volume was emblematic of the new collection's editorial plan. The book, CULTURE OF THE VENETIAN VILLAS by Marton and Muraro, was followed by VENETIAN PALACES by Zorzi and Marton, and the rest of the series, all edited to the same scrupulous standards.
A renewed commitment to figurative art saw the launch in 1990 of another high-profile collection, The Great Museums, and the volume PAINTINGS IN THE LOUVRE. This was followed by further volumes dedicated to the paintings of the Hermitage, the Musée d'Orsay, the National Gallery in London, the Uffizi, Palazzo Pitti and the Vatican. The most recent work, PAINTINGS IN VENICE, was published in 2002.
In the last few years, Magnus Edizioni has diversified its catalogue, exploring new subject areas, such as archaeology and ancient herbals. The works published so far are POMPEII, the first book in a series dedicated to the world's great archaeological sites, and two superb volumes dedicated to the herbal of Joseph Jacob von Plenck, which is conserved at the Biblioteca Marciana in Venice.
Magnus Edizioni publications are promoted and distributed in Italy by a network of regional book agencies. Sales to companies, banks and public bodies are handled directly by the publisher. The international market accounts for 35% of turnover, most of this deriving from sales to the United States, United Kingdom, France, Spain, Germany, Russia and Poland.