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Piazza San Marco (Italian pronunciation: [ˈpjattsa san ˈmarko]; Venetian: Piasa San Marco), often known in English as St Mark's Square, is the principal public square of Venice, Italy, where it is generally known just as la Piazza ("the Square"). The Piazzetta ("little Piazza/Square") is an extension of the Piazza towards San Marco basin in ...
Aug 3, 2023 · The history of Piazza San Marco dates back to the 9th century, when it was developed as a small square adjoining the original St. Mark's Basilica. Over time, as Venice grew into a maritime and trading powerhouse, the square expanded and transformed into a grand public space. The piazza's layout and dimensions were shaped by the 12th-century ...
- Overview
- The Campanile
- The Old Library
Before the five arched portals of the basilica lies the Piazza San Marco, a vast paved and arcaded square. Napoleon called the piazza the finest drawing room in Europe. The northern and southern wings of the square are formed by two official buildings, the Old Procurators’ Offices and the New Procurators’ Offices. The buildings now house fashionable shops and elegant cafés, whose string ensembles compete with each other in summer months to attract customers to their open-air tables. At the basilica end of the Old Procurators’ building stands the Clock Tower, a late 14th-century structure where the hours are struck by two Moorish figures.
Tourists throng the square at all hours, outnumbered only by gluttonous pigeons. The Clock Tower rises over the entrance to the Merceria, the main shopping street leading to the Rialto, and stands in a direct line of sight to the columns on the Molo, at the end of the piazzetta. This sight line is emphasized by three flagpoles fronting the basilica and by Sansovino’s Loggetta (“Small Loggia” or “Small Gallery”) at the base of the Campanile.
The Campanile, the massive 324-foot (99-metre) bell tower of the basilica, is a free-standing, slightly rectangular structure sheathed in Venetian red-clay brick. Soaring above the pinnacles of San Marco, it dominates the townscape and is visible for miles across the lagoon. In 1902 it collapsed, making a fortune for the photographer who captured the event. The city council decided immediately to rebuild it around a core of reinforced concrete, and the work was completed by 1912. Today an elevator brings tourists to the belfry, which is made of white Istrian limestone and is open on all four sides, affording a spectacular panorama of the island, the mainland, and the sea.
At the base of the Campanile is the Loggetta, a colonnaded portico designed by Sansovino. Constructed of red Verona marble and embellished with white marble of Carrara, verde antique (a mottled green marble), and white Istrian limestone, the Loggetta was intended to serve as a suitable backdrop for Venetian noblemen to gather before processing in state to the Doges’ Palace. It was crushed by the collapse of the Campanile in 1902 but was meticulously restored using its original materials. The Loggetta now serves as a foyer for tourists waiting to use the bell tower’s elevator.
The Campanile stands close to the 21 bays of the Old Library (1529, also called the National Marcian Library or the Library of St. Mark), on the western side of the piazzetta. The library was designed by Sansovino to house a great collection of humanist texts and manuscripts bequeathed in 1468 to the republic by Bessarion, Latin patriarch of Consta...
Oct 5, 2022 · St Mark’s Square remains one of the most visited places in all of Venice, with many of the city’s most memorable landmarks surrounding it. There are cafes and restaurants dotted along the sides of the public square, including Caffè Florian – the oldest, originating from the 18th century. The square has also become famous for the numerous ...
Piazza San Marco is the city’s main public square and contains its most famous buildings such as St Mark’s Basilica and the Doge's Palace. Napoleon called it “the world’s most beautiful drawing room”. Piazza San Marco is in the heart of Venice.It is 590 ft (180 m) long and 230 ft (70 m) wide, and is the only “piazza” in Venice ...
May 27, 2024 · Known to Venetians as Piazza San Marco, this grand piazza has served as the city‘s pulsing center for over a millennium. From its humble origins as a small public square in the 9th century, St Mark‘s has borne witness to the rise and fall of a maritime empire, the splendor of the Renaissance, and the ever-flowing tide of visitors who come to marvel at its treasures.
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Jan 5, 2023 · Located in the bustling Piazza San Marco, the Clock Tower of St. Mark’s Square (Italian: Torre dell’Orologio) is a must-see attraction for any visitor to the beautiful city of Venice. Built in the 15th century, this stunning architectural masterpiece has been a symbol of the city for centuries and remains one of the most iconic landmarks in ...
