Italy, circa 1880

Alfredo Noack

The Port of Genoa, with its nearly perfect natural harbor, has been a cultural and economic hub of the Mediteranian for thousands of years (possibly being first used by Phoenecians in roughly 1100 B.C. as they expanded throughout the region.) This 19th century image, taken by the German born photographer Alfredo Noack and sold out of his studio in Genoa, Italy, is a spectacular view of the port during one of its most heightened periods of use.