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The main building to see in St Mark's Square is by far the basilica.
...we actually had to wait a few hours for the flood waters subsided before being allowed in. The bottom of the church itself apparently also floods when the square does.
...exterior views of the Bysantine and Gothic style basilica. The structure was finished in 1060, but the facade actually underwent several changes every century after it was built until the 1600's, each time adding more elaborate marble carvings and chapels.
... mosaics in the center front of the facade above the central main entrance.
...details of the pointed gothic columns and corinthian styled capitals.
...some of the sculptures added to the facade after it had been completed.
Inside the basilic is simply breathtaking. Nearly every surface, from the bottom of the walls to the entire ceiling, is covered in brillant mosaics with gold and bronze guilded backgrounds. When the light hits those walls, the whole space just seems to glow with warmth and grandeur.
...the tomb of St Mark and his relics, said to be found in a pillar of the church in 1060.
... just a glimpse of the exit out of the basilica shows that some of the water still had completely drained out of the church yet. ... can't imagine how deep it was when they wouldn't let people in.
...when inside the church, they let visitors go outside on the top story balcony. This is a close up of one of the mosaics made from precious stones and bronze, though as you can see, there are some damaged places in many of the mosaics of the church.
...there are four bronze horses that stand above the entrance of the church, said to have seen every generation, starting with the Trojans of Greek antiquity, then in Constantinople, later in Venice during the Crusades, then taken to Paris by Napolean, and finally brought back to Venice in the early 1800's, after a long history of being conquered and taken by the victors, as many stories in history seem to go.
The main building to see in St Mark's Square is by far the basilica.
...we actually had to wait a few hours for the flood waters subsided before being allowed in. The bottom of the church itself apparently also floods when the square does.
...exterior views of the Bysantine and Gothic style basilica. The structure was finished in 1060, but the facade actually underwent several changes every century after it was built until the 1600's, each time adding more elaborate marble carvings and chapels.
... mosaics in the center front of the facade above the central main entrance.
...details of the pointed gothic columns and corinthian styled capitals.
...some of the sculptures added to the facade after it had been completed.
Inside the basilic is simply breathtaking. Nearly every surface, from the bottom of the walls to the entire ceiling, is covered in brillant mosaics with gold and bronze guilded backgrounds. When the light hits those walls, the whole space just seems to glow with warmth and grandeur.
...the tomb of St Mark and his relics, said to be found in a pillar of the church in 1060.
... just a glimpse of the exit out of the basilica shows that some of the water still had completely drained out of the church yet. ... can't imagine how deep it was when they wouldn't let people in.
...when inside the church, they let visitors go outside on the top story balcony. This is a close up of one of the mosaics made from precious stones and bronze, though as you can see, there are some damaged places in many of the mosaics of the church.
...there are four bronze horses that stand above the entrance of the church, said to have seen every generation, starting with the Trojans of Greek antiquity, then in Constantinople, later in Venice during the Crusades, then taken to Paris by Napolean, and finally brought back to Venice in the early 1800's, after a long history of being conquered and taken by the victors, as many stories in history seem to go.
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