Doge's Palace

Perhaps one of the most crowded museum experiences I've ever had. It was easy to get in. We waited in a short line and then got started in the cortile (or courtyard). Most of the pictures are from there as you couldn't take pictures inside. (Of course, many people did, though the light was dim and they'll get lots of overlit flash shots.) However, back to the cortile. There was a lot of renovation going on, so some parts are covered in scaffolding. You could see the glorious results, however, as the stone in the interior walls of the cortile were clean, bright, and light. It looks marvelous.

Once inside, things got a bit crowded. The palazzo ducale seems to be one of the main places to take tours, especially schoolchildren. Some of the rooms had up to 100 people inside, which was OK for the larger chambers, but really packed for some of the smaller ones. They have these new "whisper" headsets and microphones for tour groups, however, which meant the noise level was bearable. (I remember on a previous trip being put off by some loud, pompous guide in Ravenna who was indescribably overbearing.) This was manageable. And speaking of manage, we did manage to find a "sweet spot" between tour groups and moved in relative peace throughout the doge's personal rooms and then the "assembly" meeting rooms.

Here's a quick rundown of some of the better rooms and works of art therein (with links if I could find 'em). The Sala del Scudo had two enormous globes and wonderful maps painted along the walls. (The maps were updated in 1762 and the Asian map traces the route of Marco Polo, complete with camels! The Scala d'Oro leads up to the doge's personal apartments and just gleams in real life. It's a pleasure to mount the stairs. Above a much more unprepossessing staircase (a small one that links the doge's digs to the official rooms upstairs) contains a Titian's fresco of St. Christopher. The importance of this representation is that St. Christopher is carrying the Christ child not across a river but across the Venetian lagoon. Then, in a later room whose name escapes me, there was a marvelous Bellini Pieta. In the Shield Room (but later in this whirlwind tour because you can see it more clearly as you walk past it later) is a Tiepolo of Neptune delivering the gold of the sea to Venus. The lion being used as an armrest by Venus is particularly endearing! One place where the crowds are made insignificant is the Sala del Maggior Consiglio, still one of the largest rooms in Europe. There's an enormous painting of Paradiso, one of the last works by Tintoretto. I found it muddy and uninspiring, but it is large. One detail I loved: the lion of St. Mark's appears in the painting. Apparently wild animals do make it into the kingdom of heaven! Another great feature of the room are the portraits of the past doge's that line the frieze. In place of one doge's portrait is a black curtain with his name, Marin Faliero. He is not pictured because he was impeached. That's the ultimate blacklist. The last room is one that few of the crowds got to, even though it contains some terrific paintings. The frieze portraits along one wall are all done by Titian and they pop from the wall, despite being high up. Then, there's a glorious painting on the Battle of Lepanto (when the Venetians conquered the Turks) done by Vicentio. The repeating red oars of the main Venetian ship regulate this painting and keep the battle scene from turning into chaos. Seeing it in person lets you dwell on small details, like one Venetian soldier, hanging on to an oar in the middle of the battle and directly looking at the viewer.

By the time we got through that whole museum, our doges were barking, so we're sitting in our hotel room resting up for our first major meal of the trip. Al Covo awaits.

Below I've included a detail of one of the sculpture's on the giant's staircase. Look at the eye of the sea creature the giant is holding by the tail. He looks mad! Well, so you would be if your tail were being held in the grip of a big marble guy.