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V E N I C E

in a different light

By Grant Cameron

July 29^th, 2019

The Most Beautiful City . .

. . in the world; Venice is often ranked "the most beautiful city" by many travel sites, for example here, and here, and if not ranked number 1, invariably finds itself in the Top 3 or Top 10.

It is the birthplace of the greatest Italian Renaissance painter Tintoretto “Il Furioso”, baroque musician Antonio Vivaldi, the controversially scandalous and infamous celebrity of his time Giacomo Casanova, and of course Marco Polo, one of the world’s greatest explorers and most famous merchant traveller.

Ponte Degli Scalzi

There are 438 bridges in Venice, but the Ponte Degli Scalzi is one of only 4 which cross over the Grand Canal.

Literally meaning "bridge of the barefoot monks”, the bridge was built in 1934 replacing an older iron bridge.

A city of many names

Venice has been variously known as ”The Queen of the Adriatic", the “City of Water", "City of Masks", the ”City of Bridges", "The Floating City", “The City of Canals" and in Italian as “La Dominante" and later, "La Serenissima".

The name, Venice, as we know it derived from the ancient Veneti people who first inhabited the area around the 10th century BC.

Historically, the city was the capital of the Republic of Venice. and from 697 to 1797AD the Republic of Venice was a major financial, commercial and maritime power, and a staging area for the Crusades.

Population

Over the decades the city’s population has changed considerably, from being one of the largest in the Middle Ages with a population of around 60,000, growing to about 200,000 in the 1600’s.

In 2009 over 270,000 people resided on all of the islands in the lagoon known as the Commune of Venice with about 60,000 in the city of Venice itself.

The population of the main island has been declining to under 55,000 in 2016, and currently considered to be around 50,000 or lower. These figures do not include the daily visitors and tourists estimated to be around 20million annually.

architecture

The architecture of Venice is rich and diverse, with the most prominent style being Gothic, originating in the 14th century. Venetian Gothic architecture combines a Byzantine form and style from Constantinople with Islamic influences and elements of building design from the Orient, Venice’s Eastern trading partners.

The transition from early building design to Baroque architecture was slow, thus the many tightly crowded buildings retain an essential harmony, despite having been built in different periods.

The Rialto Bridge

The Rialto Bridge is the oldest of the four bridges spanning the Grand Canal. It has been rebuilt several times since its original construction as a pontoon bridge in 1181.

Such was the importance of the Rialto market there was too much traffic on the floating bridge, and it was replaced in 1255 by a wooden bridge with two inclined ramps, meeting at a movable central section to allow the passage of tall ships. The present single span stone bridge was completed in 1591 and is similar to the wooden bridge it succeeded.

The Iconic Symbol of Venice

The Venetian Gondola is a traditional rowing boat but it's shape is probably one of the most well known.

The vessel is handcrafted entirely using wood, has a flat bottom and is propelled by rowing with a long wooden oar that pivots on the “forcola", an oarlock made of wood. The Venetian Gondola has several features that make it unique: it is the only Venetian boat with the typical bow ornament, the “fero da prova”, and unlike most Venetian boats, it is asymmetric.

Most people think that gondolas are black, and while working gondolas are, there are many used for sport and leisure, over a hundred as of June 2018, and they – are either painted in bright colors or kept in the natural colour of the wood.

Gondola - by the numbers

280 - handmade pieces of wood.

8 - different type of wood: Oak, Fir, Cherry, Larch, Walnut, Linden, Mahogany, Elm.

6 - months for the making of a gondola

40,000 Euros - the approximate purchase price

11 - meters in length, 1.45m width, 1m - depth

600 - kilograms by weight

280 - approximate number of working gondolas

430 - number of licensed gondoliers, 160 - substitute gondoliers

How was Venice Built?

Most people know or have read that Venice is “sinking”, but in fact Venice has been sinking from its very beginning.

Originally the buildings were built by using long timber piles driven deep under water into the ground, reaching past the weak silt and dirt to a portion of the ground that was hard clay. Next, they cut off the tops of the piles and created solid platforms for the foundations of their homes.

Because the timber piles were underwater they didn’t rot. Wood rots only when both air and water are present, and so in the oxygen starved environment of the water underneath the buildings, the wood was protected.

It is joked of, but true, that many buildings in Venice today are still standing on 1000 year old piles of wood!

That "sinking" feeling.

From the beginning the weight of the city pushed down on the dirt and mud that it was built on.

This phenomenon, together with the natural movement of high tides (called acqua alta) causes periodic flooding in the city. Over the past 100 years, the city has sunk nine inches.

Some experts warn that global warming will cause sea levels to rise and eventually cover the Adriatic coastline and the city of Venice by 2100.

What is underneath?

The city of Venice presents many problems for engineers. For example, how to maintain the quality and integrity of the building structures and their foundations; how to supply the city with the water, gas, power and telephone lines that residents need.

Then there is the necessity of water supply and sewage treatment, and how to maintain a transportation system that is dependent on the sea and canals, without the canals becoming silted up and unusable.

In doing some research for the notes to accompany my images, I came across an interesting video, and which then lead me to this website.

Please do look if you have an interest in the amazing city of Venice.

The Madness of Genius

Venice: “To build a city where it is impossible to build a city is madness in itself, but to build there one of the most elegant and grandest of cities is the madness of genius.” Alexander Herzen, Russian writer.

GETTING THERE

In my local photo-essays (Thailand) I generally provide a map and GPS coordinates to the out-of-the-way places I have found.

I think everyone knows where Venice is, and so there are no GPS coordinates today, and the map I provide is from a time gone by . . I'm sure you'll be doing your own homework before visiting this marvelous city.

But lastly . . i f you enjoyed this article, please do subscribe, and . . . . a click on the “ENJOY” button would be particularly appreciated, many thanks!