MUSEI CIVICI VENEZIANI

Doge's Palace

Formerly the doge's residence and the seat of Venetian government, the Palace is the very symbol of Venice.A masterpiece of Gothic architecture, the building and its sculptural decoration date from various periods. The interior - with works by artists such as Titian, Veronese, Tintoretto, Vittoria and Tiepolo - comprises vast council chambers, delicately-decorated residential apartments and austere prison-cells. Along the facades of the Palace run loggias that overlook St. Mark's Square and the lagoon. The Doge's Palace is included in the combined entrance ticket which also allows access to the Museo Correr, Museo Archeologico Nazionale and Monumental Rooms of Biblioteca Marciana.

Museo Correr

This museum is housed in part of the Procuratie Nuove and in the Napoleonic Wing that runs along the top end of St. Mark's Square. Its core collection, left to the city in 1830 by Teodoro Correr, covered various areas of interest, and nowadays the museum contains major sculptures by Antonio Canova (in the imposing neoclassical rooms) and historical collections that illustrate aspects of the city's political institutions and everyday life. Laid out by Carlo Scarpa, the Picture Gallery has one of the world's greatest collections of pre-17th century Venetian painting, with works by Lorenzo Veneziano, the Bellini family, Carpaccio, Cosmè Tura, Antonello da Messina and Lorenzo Lotto.

Highly important services are associated with the Museum: the Library of Venetian Art and History, with its major collection of codices and archive documents, the famous Cabinet of Prints and Drawings, the Photographic Archive, the Centre for Cataloguing and multi-media production. The Museo Correr is included in the combined entrance ticket which also allows access to the Doge's Palace, Museo Archeologico Nazionale and Monumental Rooms of Biblioteca Marciana.

Clock Tower

This is one of the most significant Renaissance buildings in Venice. The central part was designed in 1496 by Mauro Codussi and houses the clock (whose face shows the phases of the moon and sun as well as the signs of the zodiac). Also adorned with a Lion of St. Mark and a niche for a statue of the Madonna, this part of the structure is surmounted by the famous Two Moors Bell. The side wings were added in 1506, and then raised higher in 1755 (to designs by the architect Giorgio Massari). The clock tower can only be visited by appointment.

Ca' Rezzonico - Museum of 18th-Century Art

Housed in the Palazzo Rezzonico designed by Longhena and Massari, this contains important 18th-century Venetian paintings - by such artists as Tiepolo, Rosalba Carriera, Longhi, Canaletto and the Guardi - together with valuable examples of period furnishings. Amongst recent major donations, the most noteworthy is that made by Egidio Martini, which added a further 300 works to the collection. These aquisitions include paintings by Cima da Conegliano, Alvise Vivarini, Bonifacio de' Pitati, Tintoretto, Sebastiano and Marco Ricci, G.B. and G.D. Tiepolo, Longhi, Rosalba Carriera and Francesco Guardi.

Palazzo Mocenigo

A patrician residence at San Stae, this houses valuable 18th-century furnishings and paintings. It is also home to a Study Centre for the History of Textiles and Costumes, whose rich and well-organised collections were put together from a variety of sources. The displays comprise a selection of rare textiles and costumes of particular importance, whilst the bulk of the impressive textile collection is available to scholars. The Museum has an important library specialising in this sector.

Carlo Goldoni's house

The birth-place of the famous playwright is in The birthplace of the famous playwright, Palazzo Centani in San Polo houses a small Goldoni museum with Venetian theatrical memorabilia. It plays host to various teaching activities and also contains the famous puppet-theatre from Ca' Grimani ai Servi, formerly part of the Ca' Rezzonico collection.
Of especial importance are the archive and library (over 30,000 works), with theatrical texts, studies and original manuscripts.

Ca' Pesaro International Gallery of Modern Art

Palazzo Pesaro, the most important baroque palace in the city, was the work of Baldassarre Longhena. Recently restored to designs by Boris Podrecca, it now houses a museum with the city's collections of nineteenth- and twentieth-century painting and sculpture. These include masterpieces by Klimt and Chagall, major works by such artists as Kandinsky, Klee, Matisse and Moore, a rich selection of works by Italian artists and an important collection of graphics. A combined entrance ticket allows access to Ca' Pesaro International Gallery of Modern Art and the Oriental Art Museum.

Fortuny Museum

Once owned by the Pesaro family, this large Gothic palazzo in Campo San Beneto was transformed by Mariano Fortuny into his own atelier of photography, stage-design, textile-design and painting. The building retains the rooms and structures created by Fortuny, together with his tapestries and collections. Open to the pubblic, the piano nobile and ground floor spaces are used for special exhibitions.

Museum of Natural History

Housed in the Fontego dei Turchi, on the Grand Canal. An important scientific institution, this contains various collections and an important library; it is also a centre for research and surveys regarding the Venetian lagoon and its fauna. Prior to the completion of the new layout, the museum does have two very interesting rooms open to the public. One offers a very atmospheric account of the Ligabue Expedition that resulted in the discovery of the Ouranosaurus nigeriensis, one of the rarest and most interesting dinosaur finds ever made; the other - on the ground floor - is an aquarium reproduction of the extraordinary environment of the tegnue, a formation of seabed rocks off the Venetian coast that is remarkable for its specific biodiversity.

Planetarium of Venice

In terms of its size and facilities, the Venice Planetarium is one of the biggest in Italy. It is housed in purpose-built premises within the park created on the site of the old Fun Fair on Lungomare D'Annunzio and offers a highly realistic reproduction of all the various areas of the heavenly vault. The Planetarium can seat sixty people and is fully wheelchair-accessible. It is run by the Associazione Astrofili Veneziani, which provides teaching services on astronomy and astro-physics for both the general public and schools.

Glass Museum

Housed in Palazzo Giustiniani, on the island of Murano, the museum collections are ordered chronologically. Along with an archaeological collection, which includes notable Roman pieces from the first to the third century A.D., there is the largest historical collection of Murano glass in the world; dating from the 15th to the 20th century, the important works on display include various world-famous masterpieces.

Lace Museum

This is situated on the island of Burano. Around two hundred rare and precious examples of work are on display, documenting the development of Venetian lace from the 16th to the 20th century. The museum also houses the archives of the famous Andriana Marcello Lace School; founded in 1872, this institution would play an important role in the city's cultural and economic life for over a century.