If you’ve already read my previous posts, A Tour of the Venetian Islands and Review: Hotel Danieli, Venice, you’ll know that to celebrate my friend’s birthday, we took a trip to Venice for a long weekend of sight-seeing and indulgence.
Our hotel was situated right next to St Mark’s Square and our terrace backed onto the Doge’s Palace. Given such close proximity, we had no excuse for not dropping by and exploring the palace grounds themselves!
The Doge’s Palace is a top attraction in Venice, open to the public and built in a strikingly gothic style. For a thousand years, it was the home to the highest elected official of Venice – the Doge (“Duke”) who was the lifelong ruler of the city – as well as the base for a number of political institutions. You can pick up an audio guide on the way through to the Courtyard, which is very thorough and recommended if you like to hear information about the building, its occupants and its history.
The Courtyard
The courtyard showcases the fantastic visage of the building, and also contains a beautiful ceremonial staircase made of stone and marble, guarded by statues of Mars and Neptune, which represent Venice’s power both by land and by sea.
The Interiors
Consisting of apartments, institutional chambers and even an armoury, the inside of the palace is decorated with ornate furnishings and beautiful ceilings, as well as houses artwork and historical objects.
The institutional chambers are, rather amusingly, decorated with allegories and artwork designed to inspire and remind members of government and politicians of their governing responsibilities, as well as frescos of various aspects of Venetian history.
The armoury contains a variety of weaponry, sculpture and suits of armour worn by historical figures.
It’s worth noting that the palace attracts large numbers of tourists so be prepared to queue on the day, else buy an advanced ticket to jump the queue and head straight inside. Enjoy!
