Anton Suryan – Savior of Venice From the Plague and Turks

Anton Suryan was a 16th-century Venetian Armenian who thanks to his medical knowledge saved Venice from the Plague.

Anton Suryan (some authors refer to him as Anton Suren or Anton the Armenian) arrived in Venice in the middle of the 16th century. An experienced specialist in shipbuilding and navigation, he addressed the Doge of Venice with a proposal to use his abilities in the interests of the maritime republic.

For his abilities and valuable practical suggestions, Suryan was nicknamed “the architect”. Anton the Armenian developed a new system for launching ships and created a device for cleaning the seabed from slime and trash.

His fame increased even more after the 1571 Battle of Lepanto (during the Fourth Ottoman-Venetian War) where he skillfully aimed the guns mounted on Venetian ships, ensuring the accuracy of their fire. His correct calculations allowed the Venetians to defeat the Turks in the battle. The defeat of the Turks in the Battle of Lepanto was fateful for Europe.

Suryan also was the first to develop and apply an anti-plague potion in 1575 after the Plague had broken out in Italy.

In 1993, the book “Armenian Venice” by Aleramo Germet and Paolo Coni Ratti di Desio was published in Italy. One of the topics of the book was Anton the Armenian. In 1995, the second edition of the book supplemented by new facts was published, arousing great interest in social and literary circles.

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