Arsenale

Map. 

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"Chi vede Venezia e no vede l’Arsenal, vede el manego ma no vede el bocal.' (He who sees Venice and does not see the Arsenal, sees the handle but not the jug). Venetian proverb
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Venice was once the greatest sea-power of her day and she owed that position to the Arsenale (Arsenal), the most efficient and productive shipyard in the medieval world. At its height the Arsenal had as many as 3,000 workers (Arsenalotti) on its payroll. 

The Arsenal was founded at the beginning of the 12th century and enlarged a century later. A further addition (Arsenale Nuovo) was made in 1325 and a third in 1473 (Arsenale Nuovissimo). The Arsenal was extended again in the 16th and the 20th centuries. The complex is now an Italian Naval base.  

The Arsenal adopted highly advanced techniques of manufacture (assembly lines, standardised parts, the division of labour), which were far ahead of its time. It also gave its name (from the Arabic word darsina'a, which means workshop) to all subsequent shipyards in the world. 

Enclosed within two miles of walls and occupying an area of 80 acres, its land entrance is a grand arch in the classical style, possibly the work of Antonio Gambello and one of the earliest Renaissance monuments in the city (c. 1460).

​In 1578, to mark the famous Battle of Lepanto (1571), a statue of Santa Giustina (the battle had taken place on October 7th, which is the saint's feast day) was added to the apex of the pediment, the work of Girolamo Campagna.  

​Over a century later, in 1682, the terrace was added and decorated with eight statues of ancient Roman gods and goddesses.  

The gateway is flanked by two ancient Greek lions, which were plundered from Athens and Piraeus in 1687, war booty sent back to Venice by Francesco Morosini following his reconquest of the Morea (the Peloponnese). Morosini was subsequently awarded the title Peloponnesiacus for his victories. The other two lions were added in 1716 to mark the reconquest of Corfu. 

The bronze flag-holder in the Campo de l'Arsenal was made in 1693 by G. Alberghetti. It bears a portrait of Francesco Morosini, who was the Doge of Venice from 1688 until 1694. 

The two crenellated towers of the water entrance date back to 1574.

Land entrance (Porta di Terra) to the Arsenal

Santa Giustina, Gerolamo Campagna, 1578

Mars

The lions of the Arsenal

The twin towers of the Arsenal