For its historic buildings, its long canals, its spectacular architecture and magical sunsets, Venice is one of the most visited places on the planet. Made up of 118 small islands that are joined together by bridges, it is an island with no traffic, in which, to move around, if you do not want to walk, you must use an aquatic environment. Do you want to know more interesting facts about this city? In Supercurioso we bring you 30 curiosities of Venice captivating Join us to meet them!
Located on the northeast coast of Italy it was for centuries the capital of an independent republic that demonstrated its strength through maritime power, commerce and art. Currently the capital of the Veneto, its historic center has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. With a population of just over 260,000 inhabitants, it struggles because its city does not degrade and retains the beauty and mystery that have made it famous for centuries.
30 Curiosities of Venice
1. How Venice was built is a mystery. It sits on wooden pillars, mainly alder, which are very resistant to water, and foundations made with sand and compressed mud that miraculously have sustained the city for centuries.
2. Venice sinks 2 mm. every year.
3. The popular ones Venetian gondolas they were only driven by men until, in 2010, a woman, Giorgia Boscolo, passed the test to drive them. Apparently his colleagues, in general, did not receive the news with pleasure.
4. In Venice, only 3 or 4 new gondolier licenses are granted each year. In total there are about 400 licenses.
5. Due to the collapse of the city, when high tide comes, on some occasions the water has risen up to 1.90 meters flooding not only the Plaza de San Marcos, but many other places.
6. One of the curiosities of Venice they are the wooden platforms that are permanently in the Plaza San Marcos so that people can access the Cathedral and can walk through the square even if there is water.
7. Venice is the oldest carnival in the world. At Venice's Carnival Attendees wear masks that hide their faces.
8. One of the usual masks in the Venetian carnival is what is known as " Maschera Medico della Peste "Which has a huge peak and is similar to what was used by doctors in the Middle Ages during epidemics of plague .
9. The Grand Canal is the largest in the city and is almost 3.8 km. of long reaching to measure 90 meters in width, being navigable in all its length. It is covered by several public water transport means such as taxis, buses and gondolas.
10. One of the curiosities of Venice is to be "the city of the bridges" since it has 417. Not all of them are public, 72 of them are private and you can not go through them.
11. We have said that the municipality of Venice has around 260,000 inhabitants, but its historic center is just over 50,000. Due to the collapse of houses and other problems such as the increase in rents, in 50 years the population of the center has been reduced by half. If this continues, it is possible according to experts that by 2030 it is practically a "ghost town", only occupied by tourists.
12. On the Grand Canal there is a palace known as " Ca'Dario " reputed to be cursed as it seems many of its owners have been seen over the years affected by violent deaths and bankruptcies since it was built in 1479. It was painted by Claude Monet.
13. In the Grand Canal there are 170 buildings and in all Venice more than 450 palaces.
14. The narrowest street in Venice is the "Calletta Varisco" in the district of Cannaregio. In some of its parts it has only 53 cm. Wide.
15. Part of the wastewater from the houses in the center of Venice goes directly to the canals as it does not have a modern sewerage system. Although more than more than 6,000 septic tanks have been installed in Venice, which treat the water before it reaches the canals, there are still many people who do not have it.
16. One of the curiosities of Venice is that it is prohibited not only the circulation of automobiles, but also of bicycles, scooters and even skates.
17. A regulation of the city dictates that all gondolas must be black. The only thing left to the discretion of the gondolier is interior decoration.
18. The Campanile of St. Mark's Square is not the original. The authentic one collapsed in 1902 and in 1912 a new one was erected exactly like the old one.
19. The Cathedral of San Marcos hides authentic wonders, one of the most interesting are the horses of San Marcos or triumphal Cuádriga. It is believed that they are the work of the Greek sculptor Lisipo in the fourth century BC. C. They were placed in the upper outer part of the cathedral in the XIII century, brought by the Venetian bulldog Enrico Dandolo, after the looting of Constantinople. In 1980 the originals were installed inside the basilica and a replica was placed on the outside.
20. In the eighteenth century in Venice there were more than 200 churches. Tradition says that some of its bell towers, like Campanile itself, not only served for the bells, but acted as beacons.
21. The tradition says that if a couple who walks in a gondola kiss under all the bridges through which they pass, their love will last forever.
22. In a hidden square in the center of Venice stands a singular construction: the Contarini del Bóvolo Palace. It is distinguished from the others by its unique external staircase from the top you have a unique view of the roofs of the city.
23. The Bridge of Sighs through which the prisoners of the Doge's Palace passed to the Court of the Inquisition is one of the most photographed places in Venice. The name was given by Lord Byron who imagined that those who crossed it for the last time seeing the outside through their windows should sigh for the freedom they were going to lose.
24. Venetian streets still retain the nomenclature of the eleventh century and are very different from the rest of Italy. Instead of "via" the streets are called "calle", the canals are large "canale" and if they are small "rio" and the small streets with houses and stores "ruga" or "rughetta".
25. The famous Rialto bridge , the most famous of the four that cross the Grand Canal, was originally a wooden drawbridge. Because it came down on numerous occasions, at the end of the 16th century they decided to build it out of stone.
26. Another of the curiosities of Venice It is the bell tower of the Church of Santo Stefano. It has one of the highest bell towers in the city (66 m.) And is inclined. The difference between the base and the top is 2 m. When they finished building it, between the XIII and XIV centuries, a part of the ground sank leaving the tower leaning.
27. At the top of the Campanile of San Marcos there is a golden image of the Archangel San Gabriel that has the function of weather vane. The Venetians know that when they look towards the basilica, the sirocco blows and that it will possibly rain with force.
28. The Bridge of the Constitution o Calatrava Bridge that crosses the Grand Canal linking Piazzale Roma with Santa Lucia Train Station is the work of the architect Santiago Calatrava. Its construction provoked a great controversy since the final costs almost doubled the initial budget and many Venetians believed that it broke the aesthetic harmony of the city.
29. If you travel to Venice, you may want to entertain yourself by looking in the trunk of a column at the end of Calle del Tragheto, near the Church of San Felice, the graffiti of a rat with a long tail. It is dated in 1644 in Roman numerals and nobody knows what the one who expressed it meant.
30. The last of these curiosities of Venice we will dedicate it to the fans of the game: the first casino, as we understand it today, although it did not have that name, was the Ridotto and it opened in Venice in 1638 in order to control the bets that were made in the carnivals.
Other Curiosities of Cities
And if you love to travel and know the secrets of the different countries and their urban centers, you can discover with us curiosities of Europe , from the most surprising data from other wonderful cities that you will surely be interested in such as:
- Curiosities of Barcelona
- Curiosities of Seville
- Curiosities of Madrid
- Curiosities of Bilbao
- Curiosities of London
- Curiosities of Paris
- Curiosities of Prague
As you can see, the capital of Veneto, also known as "La Serenissima", "La Domingante" and "La Reina del Adratico" has a lot of interesting places to discover. What do you think about our selection of curiosities of Venice ? Do you know any that we have not taken into account? Tell us and we can expand this list of curiosities.
Image: Giovanni.mello