St. Mark’s Square

The undoubted jewel in the crown of Venice, the Queen of the Adriatic, is St Mark’s Square.

Also known as the drawing room of Europe, the main piazza in Venice is surrounded by stately buildings, including the Doge’s Palace. From here the Bridge of Sighs (the English name bequeathed by none other than Lord Byron) connects the interrogation rooms at the palace with the New Prison. Its melancholy name suggests that on their way across the bridge, prisoners would sigh at their final view of beautiful Venice before being taken to their cells.

But none are more impressive than the elaborate basilica that lies at one end of the square. This opulent and ostentatious building is covered in gold mosaics, expensive marble and plundered artefacts. It is clearly a symbol of Venetian wealth and power, which has earned it the nickname, Church of Gold.

And Venice would not be Venice without “the master of the house”, St Mark’s Campanile. Although built in the early 10th Century, the original bell tower collapsed in 1902. The sole fatality of the disaster was the custodian’s cat. The tower’s current incarnation is an exact copy of the original, dov’era e com’era (“where it was and how it was”). Its new inauguration was 1,000 years to the day since the original foundations were laid, which was, of course, St Mark’s Day.