Venice

Venice

Venice, Italian Venezia, city, major seaport, and capital of both the provincia (province) of Venezia and the regione (region) of Veneto, northern Italy. An island city, it was once the centre of a maritime republic. It was the greatest seaport in late medieval Europe and the continent’s commercial and cultural link to Asia. Venice is unique environmentally, architecturally, and historically, and in its days as a republic the city was styled la serenissima (“the most serene” or “sublime”). It remains a major Italian port in the northern Adriatic Sea and is one of the world’s oldest tourist and cultural centres. Since the fall of the Venetian republic in 1797, the city has held an unrivaled place in the Western imagination and has been endlessly described in prose and verse. The luminous spectacle of ornate marbled and frescoed palaces, bell towers, and domes reflected in the sparkling waters of the lagoon under a blue Adriatic sky has been painted, photographed, and filmed to such an extent that it is difficult to distinguish the real city from its romantic representations. The visitor arriving in Venice is still transported into another world, one whose atmosphere and beauty remain incomparable. Today Venice is recognized as part of the artistic and architectural patrimony of all humanity, a fitting role for a city whose thousand-year economic and political independence was sustained by its role in global trading. The situation of the city on islands has limited modern suburban spread beyond the historic centre; its framework of canals and narrow streets has prevented the intrusion of automobiles; and its unmatched wealth of fine buildings and monuments dating from the period of commercial dominance has ensured a keen and almost universal desire for sensitive conservation. This concern for conservation is now extended not just to the city’s monuments but to the very city itself, as rising water levels and subsidence of the land upon which Venice is built threaten the continued existence of the city in its present form. In 1987 Venice and its lagoon were collectively designated a UNESCO World Heritage site.

1. Grand Canal

Canal Grande or Grand Canal is the most important icon of Venice- lined with gorgeous and vibrant looking palaces and castles on both sides. The canal is one of the best places to visit in Venice and meanders through the city in a zigzag way with a few breathtaking bridges built over it. It is one of the most popular places to visit at Venice at night, to enjoy the stunning sunset and watch the sparkling water of the canal. Don’t Miss: Thrilling and romantic Gondola ride in the Grand Canals makes it one of the must-visit places to visit in Venice for a honeymoon. Also, enjoy the view of the Venetian Gothic and Early Renaissance facades of the palaces that come off the sides. Slightly more than 2 miles (3 km) long and between 100 and 225 feet (30 and 70 metres) wide, the Grand Canal has an average depth of 17 feet (5 metres) and connects at various points with a maze of smaller canals. These waterways carry the bulk of Venetian transportation, as automobiles are banned throughout much of the city. Traditional poled gondolas are a favourite with tourists but are now vastly outnumbered by motorized public-transit water buses (vaporetti) and private water taxis. Siren-equipped boats belonging to the police, fire, and emergency medical services traverse the Grand Canal at high speed, and barges are responsible for the delivery of goods throughout the city. The connection between Venetians and their city’s main thoroughfare does not end at the grave: funeral barges can be seen transporting the dead to Isola di San Michele, an island northeast of the city that has been the site of Venice’s largest cemetery since the early 19th century. The Grand Canal is lined on either side by palaces, churches, hotels, and other public buildings in Romanesque, Gothic, and Renaissance styles. Although comparatively few examples of earlier styles remain, a concerted effort has been made to preserve some of Venice’s more famous palaces. The Ca’ d’Oro, a 15th-century palace designed for Marino Contarini, of the eminent Contarini family, was extensively renovated in the late 20th century, and its ornate facade remains one of the Grand Canal’s most-arresting sights. The Palazzo Pesaro is a remarkable example of the Classical style. Completed in 1710, nearly three decades after the death of its chief designer, Baldassare Longhena, it now houses Venice’s International Gallery of Modern Art, as well as the Museum of Oriental Art.

2. Rialto Bridge

Rialto Bridge, Italian Ponte di Rialto, stone-arch bridge crossing over the narrowest point of the Grand Canal in the heart of Venice. Built in the closing years of the 16th century, the Rialto Bridge is the oldest bridge across the canal and is renowned as an architectural and engineering achievement of the Renaissance. It was designed and built by Antonio da Ponte and his nephew, Antonio Contino, following a design competition in the city. The first bridge at that location, known as Ponte della Moneta, was a wooden pontoon bridge designed in 1178 by Nicolò Barattieri. The structure was rebuilt in 1255 and 1264 and, following a number of collapses, was eventually replaced by the Rialto Bridge to provide better access to Rialto, the primary financial centre of Venice. The bridge served as the only fixed structure crossing the Canal until the 1850s; prior to that, pedestrian crossings at other locations were done by gondola ferries. The Rialto Bridge consists of a single stone-arch span that supports a broad rectangular deck carrying two arcades of shops fronting on three roadways. The lower chord of the bridge is only 83 feet (25 metres) in length, while the width is 66 feet (20 metres). To support the wide stone arch in the soft alluvial soil, 6,000 timber piles were driven under each abutment, and the bed joints of the stones were placed perpendicular to the thrust of the arch.

3. Doge’s Palace

Doge’s Palace was probably built between the 10th and 11th centuries on the basis of a fortified central core. This nucleus was constituted with a central body with towers in the corners forming one of the masterpieces of the Venetian Gothic. In the 12th century, the first restructuring was carried out with the duke Sebastiano Ziani, who transformed the fort into an elegant palace. Later in 1200 a new expansion was realized. Between 1339 and 1342 during the government of Bartolomeo Gradenigo, the palace began to obtain its present form. The doge Francesco Foscari extended the palace in 1424 towards the side of the Basilica of San Marco. In 1442 the architects Giovanni Bon and Bartolomeo Bon added the Porta della Carta. The inner part houses the apartments of the Doge and was built by the architect Antonio Rizzo after the fire of 1483. Throughout the 16th century there were several devastating fires alternating with restructuring and embellishments like the "Scala dei Giganti" (The Stairs of the Giants) and the creation of the main treasure: the Crucifixion of Tintoretto, painted to replace a damaged mural in one of the fires. At the beginning of the 17th century, the architect Antonio Contin added the "Prigioni Nuove" (New Prisons), beyond the canal connecting them to the Palace with the Bridge of Sighs, where the convicted went on their way to the new prison. In 1797, after the fall of the Republic of Venice, the Palace was conditioned to house the administrative offices. The prison, called "i Piombi" (the Leads) by the covering of the roof, retained their old function. After the annexation of Venice to the Kingdom of Italy, the palace underwent several restructurings until 1923 when it was destined to become one of the most important museums of Venice.