Pietro Querini was a 15th-century sailing captain from the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia, ...

. He is known for being shipwrecked at

Røst Røst is a small island municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Lofoten. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Røstlandet on the island of Røstlandet. The island municipa ...

in northern

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

during the winter of 1432, and subsequently returning to

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

, where he wrote a report of his travels for the senate. He is also credited with popularizing

Stockfish Stockfish is unsalted fish, especially cod, dried by cold air and wind on wooden racks (which are called "hjell" in Norway) on the foreshore. The drying of food is the world's oldest known preservation method, and dried fish has a storage lif ...

in the

Veneto region Veneto (, ; vec, Vèneto ) or Venetia is one of the 20 regions of Italy. Its population is about five million, ranking fourth in Italy. The region's capital is Venice while the biggest city is Verona. Veneto was part of the Roman Empire unt ...

, where it is prepared as Baccalà alla vicentina.

History

Bound for

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in 1431, his merchant ship encountered a terrible storm off the western coast of France. The storm ravaged the ship, and the sailors had to go in the lifeboats. They fought the storm and cold for weeks. Many men drowned or died of starvation and fatigue when, left to their own fates, they drifted on the

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far across the

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. Just after the new year, in January 1432, the survivors stranded on an island amid the skerries near Røst in

Lofoten Lofoten () is an archipelago and a traditional district in the county of Nordland, Norway. Lofoten has distinctive scenery with dramatic mountains and peaks, open sea and sheltered bays, beaches and untouched lands. There are two towns, Svolvær ...

. Only eleven men, of a crew that totaled 68, made it. They were found by local fishermen, after nearly a month, and eventually spent more than three months together with the Røst inhabitants. This dramatic incident was the origin of trade between

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and

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, that made possible - among other beneficial outcomes - the introduction of Norwegian

stockfish Stockfish is unsalted fish, especially cod, dried by cold air and wind on wooden racks (which are called "hjell" in Norway) on the foreshore. The drying of food is the world's oldest known preservation method, and dried fish has a storage lif ...

in Italian cooking.

Querini opera

The lyric opera based on the dramatic story about Pietro Querini was shown for the first time on Røst in 2012, and then again in 2014. It was very well received by critics, including by the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...

''. The music is composed by Norwegian musician and composer

Henning Sommerro Henning Sommerro (born 3 May 1952 in Surnadal) is a Norwegian musician, composer and professor at NTNU. Biography Sommerro grew up on the Sommerro farm at Skei in Surnadal. His name became widely known in 1977 when the folk music group Vårsø ...

. The author of the libretto is Ragnar Olsen.

References

Other sources

* Franco Giliberto and Giuliano Piovan. ''Alla larga da Venezia. L'incredibile viaggio di Pietro Querini oltre il circolo polare artico nel '400'', Marsilio, * Pietro Querini, Nicolò De Michiele, Cristofalo Fioravante (edited by Paolo Nelli). ''Il naufragio della Querina. Veneziani nel circolo polare artico'', 2007,

External links

Querini opera webpageNorwegian Broadcasting Cooperation reviews the Querini Opera
{{DEFAULTSORT:Querini, Pietro 15th-century Venetian people Italian sailors Shipwreck survivors Røst