St Mark's Clocktower
St Mark’s Clocktower—Italian, Torre dell’Orologio—is an early Renaissance landmark rising on the north side of Piazza San Marco, at the entrance to the Merceria. Designed by Mauro Codussi, it links the political-religious heart of Venice to the city’s commercial and financial center on the route toward Rialto. The tower and its clock date to the last decade of the 15th century, though the clockwork has been altered many times since. Its purpose was civic as much as technical: the tower was placed so the time could be seen from the lagoon, announcing Venice’s wealth and glory to anyone arriving by water. Inside the tower’s monumental archway sit the mechanisms of the famous hourly display. Two bronze figures—known as “the Moors”—strike a bell signed by Simeone Campanato, who cast it at the Arsenal in 1497. …
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