Murano

Murano is one of the largest and most important islands in the lagoon. Its conformation is quite particular because it is composed by seven small islands crossed by canals and connected to each other by several bridges. The island of glass is defined as the island of alchemy since the times of the Middle Ages; here we are in the realm of the great artisans. It has been known for centuries for its glass production, when Venice invited the glassmakers to leave the city as a precautionary measure due to the danger of fires. The glass masters have always used the ancient technique of blowing to create works of art that are known, appreciated and exported all over the world. The island’s craft and social activities take place between the Grand Canal (of Murano) which to the west turns into Canal degli Angeli, the Rio dei Vetrai and the Canale di San Donato. “Bragozzi”, “peote” and numerous other boats sail the surface. Even today, fruit, vegetables and fish are sold in the boats. Between the foundations and the calli we find an infinity of shops and shops, trattorias and taverns and charming laboratory-houses that exhibit artistic creations and the back room where the furnace works. Among the many artistic works created we remember the Venetian pearls and the murrine, the chandeliers and the precious vases; everything is in continuous creation and evolution. In the ancient past the island was for a long time a holiday resort of the Venetian aristocracy, the memory of those times is visible thanks to the testimony still today of sumptuous palaces built between the ‘300 and the’ 600 and which inside were decorated with elegant and lush gardens with rare plants from the East. In addition to the aristocratic palaces, the island’s artistic masterpiece is the Basilica of Saints Maria and Donato, one of the greatest examples of the Venetian-Byzantine style of the Lagoon of the seventh century AD. The other church that deserves a visit is that of San Pietro in Martire, inside which we find paintings by Giovanni Bellini from the 1500s. We also mention the important glass museum founded in 1861.