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An earlier version of the present
Basilica
was built on this site in 829, when Venetian merchants acquired the relics of Saint Mark the Evangelist from Alexandria. In the 11th century it was remodelled in imitation of the
Basilica of the Apostles
at
Constantinople. It has served as the city's Cathedral since the 12th century.
The succeeding centuries, especially the fourteenth, all contributed to its adornment, and seldom did a Venetian vessel return from the Orient without bringing a column, capitals, or friezes, taken from some ancient building, to add to the fabric of the basilica. Its whole pavement is mosaic; it contains gold, bronze, and the greatest variety of stones. The façade is decorated with mosaics of different periods, Byzantine sculptures, and statues of the Evangelists and the Saviour. The four horses of gilded bronze above the great door way1 date to Classical Antiquity; by some accounts they once adorned the
Arch of Trajan.
The horses were long displayed at the
Hippodrome
in
Constantinople, and in 1204
Doge Enrico Dandolo
sent them back to Venice as part of the loot sacked from Constantinople in the Fourth Crusade. The mosaics of the atrium and the interior belong partly to the tenth century. The plan of the interior consists of three longitudinal and three transverse naves. Over the high altar is a baldacchino on columns decorated with eleventh-century reliefs; the altarpiece is the famous
Pala d'oro
(Golden Pall), Byzantine metal-work of the year 1105, originally designed for an antependium. Behind the high altar is another altar with alabaster columns. |
The choir stalls are embellished with inlaying by Fra Sebastiano Schiavone, and above them on both sides are three reliefs by Sansovino. On the two marble pulpits of the ambo are statuettes by the Massegne brothers (1394). Also in the choir are Sansovino's bronze statutes of the Evangelists and Caliari's of the Four Doctors. The crypt is underneath the choir.
San Marco
San Marco is one of the six sestieri of
Venice, lying in the heart of the city. San Marco also includes the
island of San Giorgio Maggiore. Although the district includes
Saint Mark's Square, that was never administered as part of the sestiere.
The small district includes many of Venice's most famous sights, including Saint Mark's Square, Saint Mark's Basilica, the Doge's Palace, Harry's Bar, the Palazzo Dandolo, San Moise, the La Fenice theatre, the Palazzo Grazzi and the churches of San Beneto, San Fantin, Santa Maria del Giglio, San Maurizio, San Moisè, Santo Stefano, Sant'Angelo, San Salvador, San Zulian and San Samuele.The area is densely built and was the location of Venice's government. It is now heavily touristed and is home to many hotels, banks and expensive shops.
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