Genoa is one of the Italy five most important cities and a major trading port for over 900 years. For nearly 800 of those years, from 1005 to 1797, the Republic of Genoa was an independent state, whose influence extended over much of the Mediterranean Sea. Even today, substantial Genoese remains, including cathedrals, bridges and fortifications are to be found not only along the Ligurian coast and in Corsica and Sardinia but also in the eastern Aegean islands of Chios, Samos and Lesvos, the island of Cyprus, the North African coast and even along the Black Sea coast as far as Samsun. ~ World Cruising Wiki
It’s amazing how much is still left of the Genoese influence in the Mediterranean, from the cuisine to the architecture and right down to the pebble mosaics.
The picture above shows the pebble mosaic of the sun in front of the Oratoire de l’Immaculée Conception in Bastia, Corsica, built in 1589 and embellished in 1611. The Immaculate Conception Virgin processional statue (18th century) is still carried through the alleys of the lower town every 8th of December.
More on Genoa and Bastia
Pebble Mosaics – How to Know You’re in Liguria (or not!)