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The island of Torcello is situated on the northeastern
side of the Venetian lagoon, nestled comfortably among other islands in the calm waters
and just 10 km from St Marks Square. |
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 lthough Torcello has just a
few dozen inhabitants today, it is a veritable cornucopia of artichokes and early crops.
But the story was very different 1500 years ago when the island was the cradle of the
entire Venetian civilisation. In AD 683, the Catholic
Bishop of Altino (the most important Roman city in that area at that time) moved to
Torcello in a bid to escape the barbarian hordes. He took with him a large part of the
population, thus establishing the first large settlement in the lagoon. |
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 orcello developed most rapidly between the 7th
and 10th centuries, during which time its population grew to 20,000. The island's growth
was driven by a thriving trade maintained by the numerous salt marshes in and around the
lagoon and the many
traders and merchants passing through the area. It was, in fact,
one of the Byzantine Empire's most important markets in Western Europe.hrough the centuries, however, Torcello slowly but surely
lost its importance as all the major commercial activities became concentrated
in nearby Venice. Although the island was at one time dominated by splendid buildings,
churches and monasteries, today just a handful
of monuments survive. |
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 ne of these is the famous Santa Maria Assunta Cathedral
(built in 639) with its Byzantine-Roman mosaics dating from the 11th
and 12th centuries and its imposing 11th century bell tower,
visible from all over the lagoon. Another important monument is the Santa Fosca
Church (also dating back to the 11th century), which is
surrounded by a five-sided portico built in the form of a Greek cross. |
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| pposite the churches you will find the 14th
century Palazzo dell’Archivio and the Palazzo del Consiglio, formerly
the seat of local government appointed by the doge but now a small yet important
museum. |
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 n the middle of the grassy area in front of the churches stands
Attila’s Throne, which may have been used at one time by the island tribunes when
handing down judgements. |
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 ut Torcello is much more than a splendid
testimony to the birth of Venetian civilisation. It is a key part of the enchanting world
that is the Venetian lagoon. ts hypnotic landscape is fashioned by the
ever-changing light, by the play of chiaroscuro and by the silence that envelops this
world as the sun goes down. The landscape is a dense mosaic of islands and sandbanks
emerging from the canal waters, the marshlands and the shallow canals known locally as ghebi.
The island seems lost in a faraway place and time marked only by the ebb and flow of the
tides. |
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| t is in this charming and unique world that you will find
Locanda Cipriani, opened in 1935 next to the Santa Maria Assunta
and Santa Fosca churches. |
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| o reach Torcello from Venice you can either take a private water
taxi or one of the frequent Lagoon waterbuses operated by ACTV (Venice Public Transport Company). The water
buses depart from Ponte della Paglia and the Fondamenta Nove terminal.
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| he picturesque island of Burano, the well-known island of
Murano, the Venice Lido and the coast of Cavallino-Treporti can also be reached by ACTV waterbus. |
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