St Mark's Campanile (, ) is the bell tower of St Mark's Basilica in Venice, Italy. The campanile is a reconstruction completed in 1912, the previous tower having collapsed in 1902. At in height, it is the tallest structure in Venice and is colloquially termed "el paròn de casa" (the master of the house).Zanetto, Il cambio d'abito del "Paron de casa"..., p. 9 It is one of the most recognizable symbols of the city.Fenlon, Piazza San Marco, p. 59
Located in Saint Mark's Square near the mouth of the Grand Canal, the campanile was initially intended as a watchtower to sight approaching ships and protect the entry to the city. It also served as a landmark to guide Venetian ships safely into harbour. Construction began in the early tenth century and continued sporadically over time as the tower was slowly raised in height. A belfry and a spire were first added in the twelfth century. In the fourteenth century the spire was gilded, making the tower visible to distant ships in the Adriatic. The campanile reached its full height in 1514 when the belfry and spire were completely rebuilt on the basis of an earlier Renaissance design by Giorgio Spavento. Historically, the bells served to regulate the civic and religious life of Venice, marking the beginning, pauses, and end of the work day; the convocation of government assemblies; and public executions.
The campanile stands alone in the square, near the front of St Mark's Basilica. It has a simple form, recalling its early defensive function, the bulk of which is a square brick shaft with lesenes, wide on each side and tall.Torres, Il campanile di San Marco nuovamente in pericolo..., p. 8 The belfry is topped by an attic with effigies of the Lion of St Mark and allegorical figures of Venice as Justice. The tower is capped by a pyramidal spire at the top of which there is a golden weather vane in the form of the archangel Gabriel.
Historical background
The Magyar raids into northern Italy in 898 and again in 899 resulted in the plundering and brief occupation of the important mainland cities of Cittanova, Padua, and Treviso as well as several smaller towns and settlements in and around the Venetian Lagoon.Fasoli, Le incursioni ungare..., pp. 96–100 Although the Venetians ultimately defeated the Magyars on the Lido of Albiola on 29 June 900 and repelled the incursion,Kristó, Hungarian History in the Ninth Century, p. 198 Venice remained vulnerable by way of the deep navigable channel that allowed access to the harbour from the sea. In particular, the young city was threatened by the Slavic pirates who routinely menaced Venetian shipping lanes in the Adriatic.Parrot, The Genius of Venice, p. 30
A series of fortifications was consequently erected during the reign of Doge Pietro Tribuno () to protect Venice from invasion by sea.Agazzi, Platea Sancti Marci..., p. 19. These fortifications included a wall that started at the rivulus de Castello (Rio del Palazzo), just east of the Doge's Castle, and eventually extended along the waterfront to the area occupied by the early Church of Santa Maria Iubanico.The reference in the chronicle of John the Deacon to rivulus de Castello has led some historians to alternatively place the origin of the wall on the island of Olivolo. See Norwich, A History of Venice, pp. 37–38. However, the exact location of the wall has not been determined nor how long it was there beyond the period of crisis.The fourteenth-century map of Venice by shows a wall only in the area of Saint Mark's Square. But the existence of the wall at that time is not supported in contemporary documents, and the map likely reflects a previous reality. See Agazzi, Platea Sancti Marci..., pp. 14–15.Excavations in the early twentieth century revealed stone foundations between the bell tower and the Marciana Library which may have belonged to the early wall. See Dorigo, Venezia romanica..., I, p. 24.
Integral to this defensive network, an iron harbour chain that could be pulled taut across the Grand Canal to impede navigation and block access to the centre of the city was installed at the height of San Gregorio.Norwich, A History of Venice, pp. 37–38Parrot, The Genius of Venice, pp. 30–31 In addition, a massive watchtower was built in Saint Mark's Square. Probably begun during the reign of Tribuno, it was also intended to serve as a point of reference to guide Venetian ships safely into the harbour, which at that time occupied a substantial part of the area corresponding to the present-day piazzetta.Agazzi, Platea Sancti Marci..., p. 16Dorigo, Venezia romanica..., I, p. 24Medieval chronicles variously date the beginning of construction between 897 (Chronicon Venetum et Gradense) and 1150 (Agostini Chronicle, BNM ms It. VII, 1). The conflicting dates likely refer to different stages in construction or to the resumption of work after extended intervals. Most chronicles accept the tradition that the foundation was laid during the reign of Pietro Tribuno with a majority indicating the years 912 and 913. Gregorio Gattinoni accepts the tradition and suggests 912, considering it to be the last year of Tribuno's reign. See Gattinoni, Historia di la magna torre..., pp. 24–29. There is, however, a discrepancy in that Tribuno's reign actually terminated in April/May 911 and was followed by an interregnum of eight months. See Claudio Rendina, I dogi: storia e segreti (Roma: Newton, 1984), p. 45.
Construction Tower The defensive system begun under Pietro Tribuno was likely provisional, and construction may have been limited to the reinforcement of pre-existing structures. Medieval chronicles suggest that the laying of the foundation for the tower continued during the reigns of his immediate successors, Orso II Participazio () and Pietro II Candiano (). Delays were likely due to the difficulty in developing suitable construction techniques as well as locating and importing building materials.Agazzi, Platea Sancti Marci..., p. 16Gattinoni, Historia di la magna torre..., p. 31Excavations conducted in 1884 and the more detailed studies done after the collapse of the bell tower in 1902 revealed that the foundation of the bell tower consists in seven layers of varying qualities and construction techniques, an indication that the foundation was laid in different stages and over time. See Agazzi, Platea Sancti Marci..., p. 16 Some of the early bricks dated from the late Roman Empire and were salvaged from ruins on the mainland.Zanetto, Il cambio d'abito del "Paron de casa"..., p. 11 For the foundation, alder piles, roughly in length and in diameter, were driven into a dense layer of clay located around below the surface.Torres, Il campanile di San Marco nuovamente in pericolo..., p. 23Zanetto, Il cambio d'abito del "Paron de casa"..., pp. 4–5 The piles were topped with two layers of oak planking on which multiple layers of stone were laid.
Fabrication of the actual tower seems to have begun during the brief reign of Pietro Participazio () but did not progress far. Political strife during the ensuing reigns of Pietro III Candiano () and, particularly, Pietro IV Candiano () precluded further work. Under Pietro I Orseolo (), construction resumed, and it advanced considerably during the reign of Tribuno Memmo ().Zanetto, Il cambio d'abito del "Paron de casa"..., pp. 12–13 No further additions were made to the tower until the time of Domenico Selvo (), an indication that it had reached a serviceable height and could be used to control access to the city.Gattinoni, Il campanile di san Marco in Venezia, p. 7 Selvo increased the height to around , which corresponded with the fifth of the eight present windows.Gattinoni, Il campanile di san Marco in Venezia, p. 8Zanetto, Il cambio d'abito del "Paron de casa"..., p. 14 Doge Domenico Morosini () then raised the height to the actual level of the belfry and is credited with the construction of the bell tower.Gattinoni, Historia di la magna torre..., pp. 33–39 His portrait in the Doge's Palace shows him together with a scroll that lists the significant events of his reign, among which is the construction of the bell tower: "Sub me admistrandi operis campanile Sancti Marci construitur...".Gattinoni, Il campanile di san Marco in Venezia, p. 10
Belfry and spire
The first belfry was added under Vitale II Michiel (). It was surmounted by a pyramidal spire in wood that was sheathed with copper plates.Gattinoni, Il campanile di san Marco in Venezia, pp. 9–11Zanetto, Il cambio d'abito del "Paron de casa"..., p. 17 Around 1329, the belfry was restored and the spire reconstructed. The spire itself was particularly prone to fire due to the wooden framework. It burned when lightning struck the tower on 7 June 1388, but it was nevertheless rebuilt in wood. On this occasion, the copper plates were covered in gold leaf, rendering the tower visible to distant ships in the Adriatic.Gattinoni, Il campanile di san Marco in Venezia, p. 13 Marcantonio Sabellico records in his guide to the city, De Venetae urbis situ (), that mariners looked to the gilded spire as a 'welcoming star':
The spire was once again destroyed in 1403 when flames from a bonfire lit to illuminate the tower in celebration of the Venetian victory over the Genoese at the Battle of Modon enveloped the wooden frame.Zanetto, Il cambio d'abito del "Paron de casa"..., p. 21 It was rebuilt between 1405 and 1406.Gattinoni, Il campanile di san Marco in Venezia, p. 9–17 Lightning again struck the tower during a violent storm on 11 August 1489, setting ablaze the spire which eventually crashed into the square below. The bells fell to the floor of the belfry, and the masonry of the tower itself cracked.Gattinoni, Il campanile di san Marco in Venezia, p. 18–20 In response to this latest calamity, the procurators of Saint Mark de supra, the government officials responsible for the public buildings around Saint Mark's Square, decided to rebuild the belfry and spire completely in masonry so as to prevent future fires. The commission was given to their proto (consultant architect and buildings manager), Giorgio Spavento. Although the design was submitted within a few months, the estimated cost was 50,000 ducats, and financial constraints in the period of recovery from the wars in Lombardy against Milan (1423–1454) delayed construction.Marchesini, Un secolo all'ombra..., p. 32 Instead, Spavento limited repairs to the structural damage to the tower. A temporary clay tile roof was placed over the belfry, and the bells that were still intact were rehung. The outbreak in 1494 of the Italian wars for the control of the mainland precluded any further action.Gattinoni, Il campanile di san Marco in Venezia, pp. 21–22Zanetto, Il cambio d'abito del "Paron de casa"..., p. 22