If you look closely the painting by G. Gallesio of 1800, 

Not questioning it's taste.

You're right!
But to have a fig tree in your garden with an odd shape is another thing!

I'm not gonna lie, I was writing the nursery the second you posted its link about a month ago.

Hello Viaggiatore971 -- what would be an early ripening fig in your area & good tasting. So far in my area, near Vancouver city, Canada -- the earliest ripening brebas are Latarrula( also known as Italian Honey) & Osborne Prolific. The most reliable variety is Desert King - bountiful harvest. I am trialing Ronde de Bordeaux, Dauphine, Grantham's Royal & a few more. Ronde de Bordeaux trials by my friend in Vancouver is promising as he had ripe figs given a much cooler season than normal for this year.

I do not know U.S.A. laws and do not know if I can send scions in America.

Don't worry about it. If you don't feel comfortable, that's okay.

In Italy, and particularly in my area there is the Blastophaga psensens, which is an insect necessary to pollinate the fruits of fig.

Hi Viaggiatore971, I can imagine the fig trees look beautiful as a hedge.

And the picture. Oh my, that's a lot of insects on a single fruit!

The fruit with the insects  ( Blastophaga psenens ) is a Ficus caprificus and is not edible.
But there is cross-pollination between the Ficus carica and the fig tree caprificus...

V,

Does the Veneto have named regional figs specific to the area?

My years spent in Padova were geared more towards getting an education and chasing women ( not to be redundant) than on figs. Ah, youth!

I would bet that the courtyards of the basilicas of San Antonio or San Giustina or the dozens of other places would have some mighty fine tasting figs. Who else knows fruit better than friars and nuns?

Anyway, my wife and I are tentatively planning a home exchange trip to Venice next year and I am already planning in my head how to smuggle some of those fat cuttings from the region.

Ciao,

Francesco

yes, the Veneto region has various species of tree of fig that it shares with neigh regions

Viggiatore are you familiar with a fig called Norella from Calabria ? I have looked on the internet and the only thing I found was it listed in this book pg.73

http://books.google.ca/books?id=xnA5AAAAcAAJ&pg=PA73&lpg=PA73&dq=fichi+calabria+norella&source=bl&ots=xRwLiZ792n&sig=Sl_NONXZxdvRS6gq4Q9WfxleDt0&hl=en&ei=ylGDTriYKOTy0gGKzJWEBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CB0Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false

In recent times we have done much research and many experts have been involved in order to find the real fig "Fetifero" bi-color.

In the catalog of the nursery  Belfiore (in Italy) you can find one (which I also bought),unfortunately, is not the real fig "Fetifero".
It 'a black fig that sometimes has similar morphological alterations of the fig tree "Fetifero" we're sure, the information come from who gave the scions wood to the nursery: Belfiore.

I have heard that as well. That there are several variatians.

I present a small collection of figs found in a nursery located in the Puglia regionin southern Italy:

What a wonderful job they are doing at "archeologia arborea"!

I would definitely love to have Fico Gigante in my collection:

http://www.archeologiaarborea.org/doc/gigante.JPG

If anyone can understand Italian, there is a nicely produced video available to view:

http://www.archeologiaarborea.org/en/about-us-tv-and-press/tv-reportages

Thanks for posting sites, Viaggiatore.

Frank

Here you can read about an collector spanish of figs:

Collection of figs present at the Botanical Garden of the  University of Salento:

STUDIES OF ITALIAN FIG GERMPLASM: