King of Vaes Tolorro Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 Amsterdam was part of the Dutch Republic, one of the first republics since the classical age. It was a city of canals, religious tolerance, and banks. It was very prosperous., a it was location of the world's first stock exchange. The water of Amsterdam was described by many, including John Adams to be foul.Braavos is a Free City with many canals. It has temples dedicated to all the gods of all its inhabitants, a melting pot of religions. The Iron Bank is an infamous part of its society. It is very prosperous, but its water is very brackish.Is Braavos based on Amsterdam? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Arryn Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 More Venice plus Bruges.(Amsterdam was mostly built later, more to plan, which is why it's much more regulated than Venice, Bruges and Braavos.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bright Blue Eyes Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 Partially. Another influence would be Venice. And even London. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King of Vaes Tolorro Posted September 25, 2014 Author Share Posted September 25, 2014 Oh. I was reading John Adams and it struck me that Amsterdam was a lot like braavos, minus the giant Titan Statue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Arryn Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 Partially. Another influence would be Venice. And even London.London?I don't see it. Roman square mike plus Anglo-Saxon western version plus gradual then huge expansion in all directions including across the major tributary whose crossing formed the basis of it's existence? Zero canals until Victorian era, and then as feeders, not arteries. What am I not seeing?Don't mean this anywhere as confrontational as I might sound...lol. Generally interested/curious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Arryn Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 Oh. I was reading John Adams and it struck me that Amsterdam was a lot like braavos, minus the giant Titan Statue.That's the Rhodes bit. Plus the arsenal's got a bit of Carthage to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lion Of The Night Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 More like Venice. You have to remember that Venice was very progressive for its time. Being on the trade routes, it combined a lot of eastern and western ideas.Granted no single aspect of ASOIAF is based on one single refference. So I suspect Braavos to be an amalgum of Venice, a bit of Rhodes, maybe Amsterdam, maybe Byzantium, and other cities.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trigger Warning Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 You can't really tie it down to one city, it has quite a few influences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bright Blue Eyes Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 What am I not seeing? That's the point: fog. Fog and rain. Also the seat of government of the biggest naval power by a fair margin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
assjfjgjsgjljljglgjfjsduar Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 It has some elements of Amsterdam, yeah (like how north it is), but I'd say that it's more Venice. The sealord = the doge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veltigar Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 Braavos is basically a mixture between Venice (mostly), mythical Rhodes (the statue) with a little Bruges sprinkeld on top of it (though Bruges also appears to be the model for Myr in some aspects). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Arryn Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 That's the point: fog. Fog and rain. Also the seat of government of the biggest naval power by a fair margin.Lol, nice.I think the Flemish had a fog thing, and Venice in Feb-March can be very foggy, but I'll defer to your timely Bon mot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Fevre Dream Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 That's the Rhodes bit. Plus the arsenal's got a bit of Carthage to it. Exactly, I think Rhodes and Carthage more than Amsterdam or Venice, although I suppose it's a bit of all of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Arryn Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 Exactly, I think Rhodes and Carthage more than Amsterdam or Venice, although I suppose it's a bit of all of them.Tbh I'd cite Venice as primary. From the foundation myth to the basic geography to the swaggering bravos looking for a fight, courtesan culture thing. The ship a day is a reference to both Venice and Carthage, I believe. But I agree it's a composite. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Fevre Dream Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 I do have to admit, the idea of the slaves founding Braavos, hiding on their little islands in the swamp and fog does make me think about how it is said Venice got it's start, people hiding out there from all the rampaging conflicts on the Italian penninsula, excuse my mangling of historical facts, LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Fevre Dream Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 Tbh I'd cite Venice as primary. From the foundation myth to the basic geography to the swaggering bravos looking for a fight, courtesan culture thing. The ship a day is a reference to both Venice and Carthage, I believe. But I agree it's a composite. LOL see above post, we seem to have posted at the same time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veltigar Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 That's the point: fog. Fog and rain. Flanders has that down to, trust me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kimim Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 Sterotypically, it sounds more Venice than Amsterdam. The canals, the Iron Bank, yes, but there's also the navy, which is Venice, and then there are the bravos, the assassins, the creepy skin masks which reminded me of carnival, and the general weirdness. Also, their language grew out of Valyrian the way Italian grew out of Latin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Arryn Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 LOL see above post, we seem to have posted at the same time.This could be love. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Fevre Dream Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 This could be love. Awwwwwwww, anyone who can geek on history and fiction is a okay in my book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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