This Early Renaissance building with a gold-leafed clock was originally a showpiece for Venice. It was placed strategically so as to be visible from the lagoon to announce Venice’s wealth and beauty to visitors.
The structure was built in 1496-99. Mauro Codussi designed it and the father-and-son team Gian Paolo and Gian Carlo Ranieri built the clock. Reportedly, the Ranieri’s were blinded after the clock’s completion so no other city would have as beautiful a piece.
In addition to telling time, the clock tracks lunar phases and astrological shifts. At the top, statues called the Two Moors (one old figure and one young to show the passage of time) strike the hour on a bell. Three kings and an angel emerge on the Epiphany and the Feast of the Assumption.
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