Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XVI.djvu/318

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298 VENICE that of the four gates by Palladio, and that of the formidable council of ten, and other mem- orable rooms, with embellishments and works of art by the most illustrious masters. In the two lower stories are the cells described in the notes to the fourth canto of Byron's " Childe Harold," and at the top of the palace (sotto piombi, under the leads), exposed to scorch- ing heat in summer and to cold in winter, lan- guished for a long time political and other prisoners amid excruciating sufferings. Sil- vio Pellico was one of the last confined here. The famous bridge of sighs (ponte del sospiri) connects the palace with the carceri (public prison), built in 1589 by Da Ponte. The ori- ginal palace of the great judicial dignitaries of the republic, standing upon 50 arches and fill- ing nearly the whole N. side of St. Mark's square, was converted into a royal palace by Eugene de Beauharnais ; and one of Sanso- vino's grandest structures, the church of San Geminiano, was pulled down in 1810 for its ex- tension. Pecht's Kunatschatze Venedigs (Tri- este, 1858) contains engravings of all the mas- terpieces in the churches and palaces of Venice. Several of the palaces have been appropriated to various purposes, such as the Farcetti for the municipality and the Grimani for the post office. The latter is the finest modern palace, and the palazzo Vendramin Calerghi was re- garded as the most superb in the 16th cen- tury. The modernized Manfrini palace once contained a picture gallery far superior to the present one. The casa tforo was an oriental gilded palace of the 15th century, and was restored by Taglioni. The mint and custom house are notable public buildings, but the most impressive of all is the arsenal and dock- yard, at the E. end of the city. It was long the most characteristic monument of the great naval power of the republic of Venice. Here are docks and basins, founderies for cannon, forges, an armory, a long ropewalk, and other works. New graving docks and a patent slip are nearly finished. The whole is surrounded by a lofty wall, extends over a circumference of nearly 3 m., and at one time employed 16,000 workmen. At the gate or land entrance are the marble lions brought from Greece at the end of the 17th century. The vessel (Bucentoro) which was annually used in the doge's so-called marriage with the Adriatic by throwing a ring into the sea, was destroyed by the French at the end of the 18th century, together with other relics in the model room. Adjoining the cathedral is a lofty tower (torre delV orologio) with a remarkable clock, above the dial of which are two bronze figures popularly known as "Moors," striking the hours on a bell. At the S. end of the Piazzetta are two gran- ite columns, which were surmounted by the winged lion of St. Mark, the emblem of the republic, and St. Theodore standing on a croco- dile and bearing a shield and a sword. Among recent monuments are those of Daniele Manin and Goldoni, and one of Byron is projected. Venice formerly possessed many scuole, lay charitable societies under ecclesiastical pa- tronage ; the principal one, that of St. Mark's, now forms part of the great city hospital. The educational institutions comprise, besides the new common schools, a naval college, a lyceum, several gymnasiums, new scientific and polytechnic government schools, and a chair for instruction in Japanese ; and there are a museum of the natural sciences, an Athe- na3um, and a botanic garden. The library of St. Mark's is now in the doge's palace, and that endowed by Petrarch is in the royal pal- ace. The academy of fine arts, in the former convent de la Carita and designed by Palladio, includes several schools and one of the largest and finest picture galleries in Italy. The mu- nicipal museum, founded by Count Correr, has also various works of art ; and the pinaco- teca Manf redini is in the ecclesiastical seminary connected with the church of Sta. Maria della Salute. Venice abounds with memories of Marco Polo, Petrarch, Titian, Tintoretto, and other illustrious men. The principal theatre is La Fenice, accommodating 3,000 persons. It was originally built in 1791, and rebuilt after the fire of 1836, and is now one of the finest opera houses in Italy. Venice has always been celebrated for its glass pearls, beads, and other glass wares, made in the city and on the island of Murano. The ancient manufacture of bro- cade tapestry has recently been revived, and also that of the lace work, for which the adja- cent island of Burano was always celebrated ; and a new feature of industry is the imitations of antique furniture, made of pear wood and bone instead of the ebony and ivory formerly used. Among other manufactures are ma- chines, iron and bronze work, gold and silver ware, optical instruments, photographs, and mosaics. The imports in 1873 amounted to $54,086,843, which was $30,685,926 more than in 1872 ; the increase was mainly due to that in the trade with India through the Peninsular and Oriental steamers, of which Venice has become an important station. They consisted chiefly of oils, grain, colonial goods and drugs, woven goods and twist, indigo, wine and spi- rits, silkworm eggs, hardware, timber, hides and leather, and cattle. The exports, valued at $46,999,712, comprised chiefly cotton, but- ter, grain, raw silk, colonial goods and drags, textile fabrics and twist, glass beads and enam- els, and hemp. The greater part of the trade is with England, Austria, the East Indies, and Japan; next in order of importance are the Turkish empire (including Egypt and Rou- mania), Holland, Sweden and Norway, and the United States. Venice is the principal market of the petroleum trade with this coun- try, and the imports of that article in 1878 amounted to $704,262. The exports to the United States amounted in the year ending Sept. 30, 1874, to only $56,238 in gold. For the year ending Dec. 81, 1873, the arrivals comprised 439 steamers (203 Austrian, 141