Venice is a fascinating city and there are many things to see. Here is a list of some of Venice's most popular sights.
The Basilica di San Marco is located at the Piazza San Marco in the San Marco district. It was found in 828, dedicated to the holy Markus. It was formerly built as the Doge's palace to keep the remains of the sacred Markus, who is the city's patron saint.
Through a fire in 976, the basilica was destroyed by insurgents. Still in the same year it was reconstructed by Pietro I. Orsolo, a past doge in Venice. The today's Basilica San Marco was built from 1063-1094 founded by the doge Domenico Contarini. Legend has it that after the construction on the 25th June in 1094 the bones of the sacred Markus were found again. Today, the 25th June is a public holiday called Inventio Sancti Marci. From 1807 on the Basilica San Marco
is the cathedral of Venice's patriarch.
The Basilica's main shape is a Greek cross with 76.5 m length and 62.6 width. The general shape of the basilica is affected by Byzantine architecture. The building is known for the 5 domes, from which one is located in the centre and therefore represents the main dome. The other 4 domes are respectively on one branch of the cross each. The outer as well as the inner appearance is pompous and powerful. The front dominated by mosaics represents the triumph over Constantinople. In the upper floor's gallery, the copies of the four horses from San Marco are situated, stolen in Constatinople, as the originals are situated in the Marciano museum. The inner part of the basilica is with huge columns, mosaics and marble extremley gorgeous.