Saint Marco Basilica is the most important church in Venice. It’s suppose to house the remains of Saint Marco, that were smuggled from Egypt (my understanding) and gave the Venetian people a saint to call their own. The Catholic religion in Venice is a bit different than anything else I’ve seen in that they don’t communicate through the Pope in Rome (which is just 4 hours away by train). Instead the Doge himself is the head of the church and he communicates directly with Jesus. Yet another way that Venice surprises.
The style of the church is more Middle Eastern than anything we’ve seen yet. The reason for this is that Venice had very strong ties with the Byzantine Empire (Eastern Rome). Their capital was Constantinople in modern day Turkey. Venice acted as their navy (for hire), their mover of goods between Europe and the Middle East/Africa/Asia, and their ally during wars and crusades. Venice became quite wealthy from the arrangement, and you can see it in the gold leafed tiles and the exquisite stones used in the construction of the churches in Venice.
The Church Itself
The Roofs
