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| Rob and Tom in front of St. Mark's Basilica |
structures - but we'll take you to St. Mark's Basilica.
TIP IF YOU GO - It's really best to get a private tour guide (with tickets) in advance- we were able to get right inside with independent tour guides and skip long lines of people just buying tickets, and those in large tour groups.
WHAT IS ST. MARK'S BASILICA? - The Patriarchal Cathedral Basilica of Saint Mark is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Venice, Italy. It's the most famous church in the city, and very wealthy. It is also one of the best known examples of Italo-Byzantine architecture. It is located at the eastern end of the Piazza San Marco, adjacent and connected to the Doge's Palace. Originally it was the chapel of the Doge, and has only been the city's cathedral since 1807, when it became the seat of the Patriarch of Venice.
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| St. Mark's Basilica (center) with Campanile Tower (right) |
BURNED DOWN TO KILL - According to the history (on Wikipedia): the church was burned in a rebellion in 976, when the populace locked Pietro IV Candiano inside to kill him, and restored or rebuilt in 978. Nothing certain is known of the form of these early churches. From perhaps 1063 the present basilica was constructed.
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| Inside the Basilica. Credit: Touritalynow.com |
NO PHOTOS INSIDE- There were NO pictures allowed in the basilica because it's an active church. So, we had to go on the Internet to get a picture of the inside.
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| Horses of St. Mark. |
IF YOU READ DAN BROWN'S BOOK "INFERNO" - You'll read about the statue of the "Horses of Saint Mark." This set of bronze statues of four horses, also known as the “Triumphal
Quadriga,” was originally part of a monument depicting a “quadriga” or a
racing chariot pulled by four horses. The sculptures are thought to
date back to classical antiquity and are attributed to the Greek
sculptor Lysippos who lived around 4 BC. The horses were placed on the
façade of St Mark’s Basilica after the sack of Constantinople in 1204,
was looted by Napoleon in 1797, and then put back in 1815. They have
since been taken down from the facade and placed inside the church
instead, to preserve them. The ones currently on the façade are
replicas.\NEXT: Palazzo Ducale (Doge's Palace)
