Grand Canal

This article explains the main waterway in Venice; for other meanings, see Canale Grande .

Grand Canal

The Canal by William Turner

View from the Rialto Bridge over the canal in south-west direction

Grand Canal from Ponte dell'Accademia to the west

The Grand Canal , in the Venetian town of Canałazzo , is a main waterway in the lagoon city of Venice, almost four kilometers long, between 30 and 70 meters wide and up to five meters deep . The first bend in the S-shaped canal is called the Volta di Canal .

It is the last part of the northern arm of the Brenta River , which runs through the lagoon , which is why the water here, unlike the other Venetian canals, always flows. Around 45 smaller canals ( Rii in Italian ) flow into the Grand Canal.

location

The Grand Canal separates the citra (on this side) -Stadtsechstel ( Sestieri ) San Marco , Cannaregio and Castello by lying on the right side channel ultra (beyond) -Stadtteilen Dorsoduro , San Polo and Santa Croce .

Bridges and gondolas

There are currently four bridges spanning the canal, the oldest of which is the Rialto Bridge . It is a covered bridge in limestone built towards the end of the 16th century instead of a wooden bridge .

Until the Scalzi Bridge and the Accademia Bridge were built in the 19th century (both renewed in the 20th century), the Rialto Bridge was the only permanent connection across the canal.

In the summer of 2007, the construction of a fourth bridge based on designs by the Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava began. On August 11, 2007, the middle section of the load-bearing structure was installed. To this end, the Grand Canal was closed for several hours. On September 11, 2008, the bridge was inaugurated as the " Ponte della Costituzione ". The 94-meter-long bridge with steps enables commuters and bus travelers to get to Santa Lucia train station directly from the parking lots and the bus station in Piazzale Roma.

In addition to the bridges and the urban vaporetti , gondolas ( traghetti in Italian ) allow people to cross the Grand Canal in eight places. The gondolas only run during the day.

Loss of historical buildings, including the church of Santa Lucia, had to be recorded in the 19th century when the train station was built at the western end of the canal. In memory of the demolished church, the station was called Stazione Ferroviaria Santa Lucia .

In the Grand Canal is an administrative fine reinforced bathing ban is strictly enforced.

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  Ponte della Costituzione

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  Scalzi Bridge

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  Rialto Bridge

• 

  Ponte dell'Accademia

Palaces

The Grand Canal is lined with over 200 magnificent aristocratic palaces. In Venice, the height of the palaces was dictated by numerous regulations of the city ​​republic and everyone accepted this. Here, too, compared to other Italian cities, there was a strong common spirit that overlaid individual interests. The opposite example are the gender towers in other cities, with which the individual families tried to outdo each other.

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Palaces on the Grand Canal

After the great Fourth Crusade of 1204 , in the course of which the Venetians took rich booty, the formerly wooden houses were initially replaced by stone buildings in the Byzantine style. From the 15th century onwards, they were gradually replaced by magnificent palaces - in the Gothic , Renaissance and Baroque styles . Byzantine elements have been preserved in a few buildings, but can still be seen in the tracery forms of the Gothic windows.

Palazzo Loredan, Palazzo Farsetti , both with water level, piano nobile, another simple upper floor and mezzanine

The distance between the palaces and the Grand Canal was sometimes greater in the early and high Middle Ages. It was not until the 13th century that the buildings, which were built on many small islands, began to be extended towards the canal and the courtyard was moved to the rear. At the same time, the main facade was moved towards the water, which previously faced the land side. Contrary to popular belief, the palaces of the most famous families were not on the Grand Canal, but in larger and smaller squares or on side canals.

The stones for these palaces were mainly brought in from the mainland, especially from Verona (red marble) and from Istria (white limestone marble). All building material, including bricks for walls and roofs, as well as vast amounts of wood, had to be brought in from outside, sometimes over hundreds of kilometers, as nothing was naturally available in Venice.

Arbor on a palace

The palaces are often very different in size, but all of them are laid out according to the same construction principle - a dominant central section and laterally subordinate wings. The facade, which is opened by large windows, and the preference for light over solid construction is also a result of the need not to be able to build too heavy houses on unsafe, often sandy ground in the middle of the lagoon. All of Venice's buildings are built on scaffolding made of thousands of oak piles that were driven many meters into the ground. The interior arrangement of the rooms can usually be read on the facade. This shows the builders' centuries of experience that the fundamental element of Venice is water, the light reflections of which should reflect into the rooms.

The lower floor, the water floor, was open to accommodate the goods brought in by the ships. This entire floor, the piantereno, had been reserved for trade on the courtyard side since the 14th century, i.e. the economic and financial basis of most of the Venetian families who lived in such palaces. Here the boats docked in front of the portal, were loaded and unloaded and the goods were immediately stored in the adjacent rooms and magazines. In front of the palaces are the famous Pali, the colorful poles for tying up the ships. With their individual colors, they also designate the respective landlord.

The first floor, the piano nobile , and often another, was reserved for the family. Here there was the great hall, the portego, which took up the whole depth of the house in the middle. This central wing was mostly surrounded by smaller rooms on both sides. The servants lived at the top of the mezzanine . Most of the kitchens were also under the roofs - for good reason. If there was a fire here, the whole house wouldn't be affected.

Courtyards are almost always missing. Each palace had its own fountain in the courtyard, which is open to the rear. The less affluent got their water from public cisterns on the campuses . A well was set up above each cistern.

Some of the water for the cisterns came from the roofs. The so-called Gorne, a stone rain gutter, ran around the roof and was connected to the cisterns by vertical drainage pipes. The roofs of the palaces are relatively flat, and - according to legend - because the Venetian women were able to let the sun bleach their hair there until it had reached that shade of golden reddish blonde for which it was famous in Titian's time . Only the hair was bleached, not the skin tanned. That was considered vulgar. Only people who had to work outdoors had brown skin. Contrary to popular belief, the roofs of the Venetian palazzi were rarely really accessible, but in Venice there were and still are numerous arbors , wooden, balcony-like structures above the roofs.

Santa Maria della Salute

Many palaces were very dark inside, despite their airy, light construction, especially in the rear area when the house, as is usually the case in Venice, was wedged between neighboring buildings, with often little or no space for an inner courtyard. The stairwells and ground floors in particular left a lot to be desired in terms of light and air. This is why these areas were upgraded in the 16th century.

Churches

Directly facing the Grand Canal, separated from it only by small squares or paved bank areas, there are also some churches: the Santa Maria di Nazareth (Scalzi) , San Simeone Piccolo , San Geremia , San Marcuola , San Stae , San Samuele and Santa Maria della Salute . As part of the Accademia , the largest museum for Venetian art, the nave of the former church of Santa Maria della Carità can also be seen. The church of Santa Lucia was demolished in the 19th century for the construction of the station at the northwest end of the Grand Canal.

Orientation plan

The following map shows the buildings and moorings on both sides of the Canal Grande if one follows the natural flow.

right side	image	image	Left side
Ponte della Libertà
Former Santa Chiara Monastery (Uffici Questura)			Railway area
Canale di Santa Chiara
Piazzale Roma vaporetto stop
Ponte della Costituzione
Rio Novo			Palazzo della Regione , former seat of the railway administration
Rio della Croce
Palazzo Emo Diedo ( Andrea Tirali , 17th century)			Venezia Santa Lucia train station
School of wool weavers
San Simeone Piccolo
Palazzo Adoldo
Palazzo Foscari Contarini			Santa Maria di Nazareth (Scalzi)
Ponte degli Scalzi Scalzi Bridge
Rio Marin			Pier Stazione Santa Lucia
Campo San Simeon Grande			Palazzo Soranzo Calbo Crotta
Ca 'Pollaco			Rio Terà dei Sabbioni
Palazzo Gritti			Palazzo Flangini ( Giuseppe Sardi , 17th century)
Palazzo Corner			Scuola dei Morti (Undertaker)
Palazzo Donà Balbi			San Geremia (18th century)
Palazzo Zen			Palazzo Labia
Riva di Biasio vaporetto stop			Canale di Cannaregio
Palazzo Marcello Toderini			Palazzo Emo
			Palazzo Querini
Rio di San Giovanni Decollato			Palazzo Correr Contarini Zorzi
Palazzo Giovanelli			Palazzo Gritti Dandolo
Casa Correr			San Marcuola (18th century, unfinished)
Traghetto Museo			Traghetto San Marcuola
Fontego dei Turchi (Natural History Museum)			San Marcuola vaporetto stop
Rio del Fondaco dei Turchi			Rio di San Marcuola
Fontego del Megio (millet granary, 15th century)			Palazzo Vendramin-Calergi ( Mauro Codussi , Renaissance)
Palazzo Belloni Bataggia ( Longhena , Baroque, 17th century)
Rio di Ca 'Tron
Ca 'Tron (Istituto Universitario di Architettura di Venezia, 16th century)			Palazzo Marcello ( Benedetto Marcello was born here)
Palazzo Duodo			Palazzo Erizzo
Palazzo Priuli Bon			Palazzo Soranzo Piovene
San Stae vaporetto stop			Palazzo Emo alla Maddalena
San Stae (Sant'Eustachio, 18th century)			Palazzo Molin Querini
Scuola dei Tiraoro e Battioro (Scuola of the gold workers)			Rio della Maddalena
Rio della Rioda			Palazzo e Palazzetto Barbarigo
Palazzo Coccina Giunti Foscarini Giovannelli
Rio della Pergola			Palazzo Gussoni Grimani Della Vida
Ca 'Pesaro ( Longhena , 17th century, Museo d'Arte Moderna)			Rio di Noale
Rio di Ca 'Pesaro or delle Due Torri			Palazzetto da Lezze
Palazzo Donà			Palazzo Boldù
Palazzo Correggio			Palazzo Contarini Pisani
Ca 'Corner della Regina (18th century)
Ca 'Favretto			Rio di San Felice
Rio di San Cassiano			Palazzo Fontana Rezzonico ( Clement XIII was born here)
Palazzo Morosini Brandolin			Palazzo Giusti
Fondamenta dell'Olio			Ca 'd'Oro (15th century, Galleria Franchetti)
			Ca 'd'Oro vaporetto stop
Palazzo della Pretura			Palazzo Giustinian Pesaro
Rio delle Beccarie			Ca 'Sagredo
Pescheria (neo-Gothic, 20th century)			Campo Santa Sofia
Traghetto Pescaria			Traghetto Santa Sofia
Campo della Pescaria			Palazzetto Foscari
			Casa Coin
			Palazzo Michiel dalle Colonne
Fabbriche Nuove di Rialto ( Sansovino , 16th century)			Palazzo Michiel del Brusà
			Palazzo Smith Mangilli Valmarana
			Rio dei Santi Apostoli
			Ca 'da Mosto (Venetian-Byzantine, 13th century)
			Palazzo Bollani Erizzo ( Pietro Aretino lived here )
			Rio di San Giovanni Crisostomo
Fabbriche Vecchie di Rialto ( Scarpagnino , 16th century)			Palazzo Lion Morosini
			Campiello del Remer
			Palazzo Remer
			Casa Sernagiotto
			Palazzo Civran
			Palazzo Perducci
			Palazzo Ruzzini
			Rio del Fontego dei Tedeschi
Palazzo dei Camerlenghi (Renaissance, 16th century)			Fondaco dei Tedeschi (16th century, post office)
Ponte di Rialto Rialto Bridge
Palazzo dei Dieci Savi ( Scarpagnino , 16th century)			Riva del Ferro
Fondamenta del Vin			Rialto vaporetto stop
			Palazzo Dolfin Manin ( Sansovino , Renaissance, 16th century, Banca d'Italia)
			Rio di San Salvador
			Palazzo Bembo (Gothic, 15th century; Pietro Bembo was born here)
			Traghetto Rialto
Traghetto di San Silvestro			Ca 'Loredan (Venetian-Byzantine, 13th century, seat of the city council)
			Ca 'Farsetti (Venetian-Byzantine, 12th-13th centuries, seat of the city council)
San Silvestro vaporetto stop			Palazzo Cavalli
Palazzo Barzizza			Palazzo Grimani (di San Luca) (16th century, Michele Sanmicheli , seat of the appellate court)
Palazzo Giustinian Businello
Rio dei Meloni			Rio di San Luca
Palazzo Papadopoli			Palazzo Corner Contarini dei Cavalli
			Palazzo Tron
Palazzo Donà della Trezza			Palazzo d'Anna Viaro Martinengo Volpi di Misurata
Palazzo Donà della Madoneta
Palazzo Sure
Rio della Madoneta			Palazzo Querini Benzon
Palazzo Bernardo di Canal (Gothic, 15th century)			Rio di Ca 'Michiel
Palazzo Querini Dubois			Palazzo Curti Valmarana
Palazzo Grimani Marcello			Palazzo Corner Spinelli ( Codussi , Renaissance , 15th century)
Palazzo Cappello Layard			Sant'Angelo vaporetto stop
Rio di San Polo			Casa Barocci
			Casa Tito
Palazzo Barbarigo della Terrazza (16th century)			Rio di Ca 'Garzoni
Palazzo Pisani Moretta (Gothic, 15th century)			Palazzo Garzoni
Palazzo Tiepolo Passi			Traghetto Garzoni
			Fondaco Marcello
Palazzo Giustinian Persico			Palazzo Corner Gheltof
Rio di San Tomà			Palazzi Mocenigo (16th - 17th centuries; Giordano Bruno , Thomas Moore and Lord Byron stayed here )
Traghetto San Tomà
Palazzo Marcello dei Leoni
Palazzo Dolfin (San Polo)
Vaporetto stop in San Tomà / Frari
Palazzo Dandolo Paolucci
Palazzo Civran Grimani
Rio della Frescada			Palazzo Contarini delle Figure ( Andrea Palladio stayed here)
Palazzo Caotorta Angaran
Palazzo Balbi ( Vittoria , Renaissance with Baroque elements, 16th century; seat of the Veneto government )			Palazzo Erizzo Nani Mocenigo
Rio di Ca 'Foscari
Ca 'Foscari (Gothic 15th century; headquarters of the University of Venice)			Palazzo Da Lezze
Palazzo Giustinian (Gothic, 15th century; Richard Wagner lived here)			Palazzo Moro Lin
Ca 'Bernardo			Ramo Moro Lin
Palazzo Bernardo Nani			House at Ramo Grassi
Ca 'Rezzonico ( Longhena , Massari ; 17th - 18th centuries; Museo del Settecento Veneziano)			Palazzo Grassi (Massari, neoclassical, 18th century)
Rio di San Barnaba			San Samuele
Palazzo Contarini Michiel			San Samuele vaporetto stop
Ca 'Rezzonico vaporetto stop			Casa Francheschinis (20th century)
Traghetto San Barnaba			Traghetto San Samuele
Palazzetto star			Palazzo Malipiero
Rio Malpaga
Palazzo Moro ("House of Othello")			Palazzo Tecchio Mamoli
Palazzo Loredan dell'Ambasciatore (Gothic, 15th century)
Casa Mainella			Ca 'del Duca
Rio di San Trovaso			Rio del Duca
Palazzo Contarini Corfù			Palazzetto Falier Canossa
Palazzo Contarini degli Scrigni
Palazzo Mocenigo Gambara			Palazzo Giustinian Lolin ( Longhena , 17th century)
Palazzo Querini Vianello
Scuola Grande di Santa Maria della Carità (Massari, 18th century; today Accademia )			Palazzo Civran Badoer Barozzi
Former church of Santa Maria della Carità (Gothic, 15th century; Gallerie dell'Accademia )			Rio di San Vidal
Accademia vaporetto stop			Campo San Vidal
Ponte dell'Accademia Accademia bridge
Palazzo Brandolin Rota (owned by Toti dal Monte )			Palazzo Cavalli-Franchetti (Gothic, 15th century)
Palazzo Contarini Polignac (Palazzo Contarini Dal Zaffo) (Gothic with Renaissance elements, 15th century)
Palazzo Balbi Valier			Palazzo Barbaro-Curtis
Palazzo Loredan (Fondazione Cini)			Palazzo Benzon Foscolo
Rio di San Vio			Palazzetto Pisani
			Rio del Santissimo
Palazzo Barbarigo (modern mosaics)			Palazzo Succi
Palazzo da Mula Morosini			Casa Stecchini
Palazzo Centani Morosini
Ca 'Biondetti ( Rosalba Carriera lived here )			Casina delle Rose ( Antonio Canova and Gabriele D'Annunzio worked here )
Palazzo Venier dei Leoni ( Peggy Guggenheim Collection )			Palazzo Corner della Ca 'Granda ( Sansovino , Renaissance , 16th century; Prefectur)
Rio delle Torreselle			Rio di San Maurizio
Palazzo Dario (Renaissance, 15th century)			Palazzo Minotto
Palazzo Barbaro Wolkoff ( Eleonora Duse lived here )			Palazzo Barbarigo
Rio della Fornace			Rio di Santa Maria Zobenigo
Palazzo Salviati			Vaporetto stop at Santa Maria del Giglio - Palazzo Marin Contarini
Palazzo Orio Semitecolo Benzon			Traghetto S. Maria del Giglio
Traghetto S. Gregorio
Casa Santomaso			Palazzo Pisani Gritti
Palazzo Genovese (neo-Gothic, 19th century)			Rio delle Ostreghe
Abbazia di San Gregorio			Palazzo Ferro Fini (Regional Council of Veneto)
Rio della Salute
Salute vaporetto stop			Palazzo Contarini Fasan (Gothic, 15th century; "House of Desdemona")
Santa Maria della Salute (baroque, 17th century)			Palazzo Venier Contarini
			Palazzo Michiel Alvisi
Patriarchal seminary			Palazzo Badoer Tiepolo , Hotel Europa & Regina
Punta della Dogana			Palazzo Treves de Bonfili
			Rio di San Moisè
			Hotel Bauer (neo-Gothic, 19th century)
			Ca 'Giustinian (Gothic, 15th century; municipal administration, Biennale offices )
Palazzo Vallaresso Erizzo (former Ridotto)
			San Marco Vallaresso vaporetto stop
			Fonteghetto della Farina (Renaissance, 15th century; Port Authority)
			Venice Pavilion, Palazzina Selva

literature

• Alvise Zorzi : Canal Grande - biography of a waterway. from Ital. by Gesa Schröder, Hildesheim 1993, ISBN 3-546-00057-9
• Hermann E. Mark: Canal Grande, history and stories from , Ibera Verlag 2002, ISBN 3-85052-116-8
• Umberto Franzoi: The Grand Canal , Arsenale Editrice, srl 2006, ISBN 88-7743-315-9

Web links

Commons : Canal Grande  - album with pictures, videos and audio files

• Live webcam on the Grand Canal
• Giuseppe Tassini's "Curiosità Veneziane" with explanations of numerous names of Venetian streets, squares and other places (Italian)
• Alphabetical list with illustrations of 138 palaces in Venice

Individual evidence

1. ^ Rolf Toman (ed.): The art of the Italian Renaissance. Architecture - sculpture - painting - drawing. Cologne 1994, p. 165
2. ^ Keller, Harald: The Art Landscapes of Italy [1960]. Frankfurt a. M. 1983, p. 770

Coordinates: 45 ° 26 ′ 12 ″  N , 12 ° 19 ′ 59 ″  E