Handmade books portraying works by Neoclassical sculptor Antonio Canova, as well as gold coins representing an imaginary future world currency, will be given to the participants at the opening of the three-day summit.
There are 10 copies of the book, commissioned by Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi from the Bologna-based art publishing house Fondazione Marilena Ferrari, each with a personalized dedication for the leader who receives it.
The 71-centimeter by 44.5-centimeter Canova books were produced for free by 23 Italian craftsmen using traditional techniques, the publishing house said. Each one weighs 24 kilograms.
The books’ covers are decorated with white marble bas-reliefs, and the volumes are bound with silk and gold thread. They include etchings and dozens of black and white photographs of Canova’s artworks.
The coins, made by Belgian Luc Luycx, who designed one side of the euro coins, are called “eurodollars,” in a symbolic call for a common currency to unite Europe and the United States.
They were produced by the United Future World Currency, a group pushing the idea of a global currency.
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