|
 |
| Venice Homepage
» Castello
area » What to see |
Riva degli Schiavoni |
You should start your visit in Castello area, by a romantic walk
on the Riva degli Schiavoni, where you will enjoy
a superb view of the lagoon. You will soon discover the Ponte
della Paglia and of the Ponte dei Sospiri.
The Ponte dei Sospiri or "Bridge of Sighs" crosses the
Rio di Palazzo and connects the Doges' Palace with the prisons across
the river. The Bridge of Sighs received its name in the 17th century,
because the prisoners who passed through it on their
Ponte della Paglia |
way to the prison cells on the other side would most likely see
the beautiful sight of the lagoon and freedom for the last time.
The tourists are standing on the Ponte della Paglia, which seems
to be a good spot to consult maps and tour guides. In front of the
two bridges stands the S.Giorgio Island and the beautiful Chiesa
di San Giorgio Maggiore, one of the most impressive Venetian buildings
by Andrea Palladio started in the 1566. San Giorgio Maggiore keeps
many masterpieces of the Venetian Renaissance by Tintoretto. Walking
through the Riva degli Schiavoni, the visitor could enjoy the visit
of the white Church of La Pietà (or of S.
Maria della Visitazione), an
Ponte dei Sospiri |
original church of the 15th century. it was rebuilt on a design
by Giorgio Massari and consecrated in 1760. The building is one
of the most beautiful and elegant of the 17th century. Above the
ceiling of the main entrance there is the Fortitude and Peace by
G. B. Tiepolo, one of his masterpieces. The best work of all is
the powerful ceiling frescoes of the Choir Triumph of Faith. Entering
in Campo San Zaccaria, you will find then the Church of
San Zaccaria, the first foundation dates back to the ninth
century but was subsequently transformed during the Renaissance.
Among its works of precious arts is Vergine col putto in trono,
Santi ed Angeli musicanti by Giovanni Bellini (1505). All the walls
of the aisles are painted with religious scenes or representing
the daily life of Venice.
Close to San Zaccaria, another important church lie:
Santa Maria della Visitazione |
the Church of S. Giorgio dei
Greci, begun in 1539, as the Greek obtained permission
to built a school and to join a church, on a design by S. Lombardo
it was completed by G. Chianantonio and consecrated in 1561. The
interior is sumptuous and elegant with one nave with Barco and a
hemispherical dome in the center frescoed by G. di Cipro.
The Church of SS. Giovanni e Paolo (two Roman brothers
martyred in Rome in the 2nd century in Rome), built by the Dominican
friars, was begun in 1234 under the supervision of a friar of the
order and it took almost two century to be finished. It is an example
of the religious, gothic architecture, with a facade divided into
three parts, with central rose window and two lateral round openings.
Beyond the south flank of SS. Giovanni e Paolo, there is the Ospedaletto,
a small hospital for the elderly and infirm, next to the church
of Santa Maria dei Derelitti, founded in 1528. In the 1770s, the
authorities of the Ospedaletto engaged the architect Matteo Lucchesi
to convert a disused kitchen beyond the Court of the Four Seasons
into a Music Room.
San Zaccaria |
Walking through the Riva degli Schiavoni you will arrive then to
Historical Navy Museum and to the Arsenale. The Museo Storico
Navale of Venice is the most important of its kind in Italy.
It is situated in an ancient barn dating to XVI century, and it
is extremely vast and divided into four floors, reconstructing the
naval history of the Serenissima Repubblica, and also that of the
French and Austrian occupation and of the Italian Navy. Among the
more than 25.000 pieces constituting the collection, that are alternatively
exhibited, one can see original galley stern lights and decorations,
ancient models, among which the famous "Bucintoro" (gala
boat of the Venetian Doge), nautical instruments, pilot-books, flags,
uniforms, arms, paintings with marine subjects.
Arsenale |
The Arsenale is a large group of buildings from
whose yards the powerful war fleet and merchant navy went out to
sea. In its greatest period of activity, over 16,000 men worked
there; they were called Arsenalotti and operated in teams made up
of carpenters, sawyers, caulkers that together could float up to
six large merchants galleys every two years. Venice remained the
most active naval constructed in Adriatic until 1797. The end of
the Republic brought by Napoleonic wars and the Austrian occupation
also marked the collapse of the Arsenal. Today we can admire the
Serenissima’s ships models in the Arsenale museum situated
beside the Rio of the Arsenale with two large anchors on the front.
|
|
HOTELS
BY PRICE
