Venice Tourist Information
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Basilica Santa Maria Assunta

Basilica Santa Maria Assunta

The Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta is a notable example of Venetian-Byzantine architecture, one of the most ancient religious edifices in the Veneto. According to an ancient inscription, it was founded by the exarch Isaac of Ravenna in 639.

Chiesa di Santa Fosca

Chiesa di Santa Fosca

The Church of Santa Fosca is a small church, which dates to the eleventh century, is built to a Greek-cross plan and fronted by a later portico, sorrounded by octagonal arcades with raised base arches and sculpted capitals. Inside there is an interesting connection between the square plan of the base and the round plan of the dome.

Museo provinciale di Torcello

Museo provinciale di Torcello

The Torcello museum is housed in two fourteenth century palaces, the Palazzo dell'Archivio and the Palazzo del Consiglio, which was once the seat of the communal government. The museum of Torcello consists of two sections: the medieval and modern section and the archaeological section. In this first section are kept early Christian, high medieval and medieval findings, almost certainly from Torcello and the islands around it. The second houses findings found in the Venetian area, the lagoon, and material from different places, such as a set of small Egyptian statues, covering a period from the Palaeolithic to the late Roman age.

Ponte del Diavolo

Ponte del Diavolo

The Devil’s Bridge, arch shaped, is one of the oldest and the only one, with the Ponte Chiodo of Cannaregio, to have retained the characteristics of the old Venetian bridges: it is free of parapets. There is no certainty about the origin of the name: there are those who think the name comes from a local family (Diavoli, in fact), but perhaps the name goes back to the legend spread throughout Italy during the Middle Ages, according to which many bridges were the work of the Devil, who was building in exchange for souls. The latter hypothesis seems the most likely.