Contarini & Cosmatos in 19th Century Italy & Greece

[paul m contarini]

Hello, dear friends

I am seeking assistance - or any slivers of insight - that could help me along my journey of tracing my Greek and Venetial origins.

The family names I am researching are Contarini and Cosmati or Cosmatos.

Before you jump to tell me about Contarini being an ancient Venetian family and Cosmatos being a name typically found Keffalonia, I am already aware.

However, I am seeking information about a specific individual named Francesco Contarini who may have been born in Venice in the 1830s, who may have migrated to Greece, and who may have had some relationship to a Roman family Cosmati (only attested to in the 13th century as skilled workers in stone and mosaic). He most probably had a direct link to Cosmatos through his wife who could have been called Maria who may have been Roman, but is more likely to have been Greek - this is still to be determined.

I have a record of Francesco being present on Tinos in 1876 that indicates he was born in 1832 - this seems reliable because Francesco is not a common name in Greece - and I have a family document indicating that a Maria Kontarini was his daughter who lived in Egypt between 1895 and 1920 (approximately).

Therefore I am seeking any records of this Francesco from Venetian archives AND I would like to search for any individuals named Cosmati or Cosmatos registered as having been born in Rome in the period from 1840 until 1860.

If you know of any specialists working in this field, please do let me know.

Kind regards.