{"id":58286,"date":"2025-01-04T23:39:49","date_gmt":"2025-01-04T22:39:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.outono.net\/elentir\/?p=58286"},"modified":"2026-01-04T01:32:30","modified_gmt":"2026-01-04T00:32:30","slug":"the-fascinating-engineering-used-to-build-and-expand-the-city-of-venice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.outono.net\/elentir\/2025\/01\/04\/the-fascinating-engineering-used-to-build-and-expand-the-city-of-venice\/","title":{"rendered":"The fascinating engineering used to build and expand the city of Venice"},"content":{"rendered":"

Venice, located in the northeast of Italy, is one of the most fascinating, most beautiful and also most visited cities in Europe.<\/p>\n

A fascinating video that shows how bridges were built in the Middle Ages<\/a><\/rel>
\nA virtual tour of ancient Rome in full color, just as it was in its heyday<\/a><\/rel><\/p>\n

The city, founded in the 5th century AD, is formed by 170 canals (or \"rii\" as they are called there) and connected by 340 bridges<\/strong>. More than half of its 414.6 square kilometres of surface area is water, with 156.9 square kilometres of land.<\/p>\n

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Venetian gondolas with the Rialto Bridge in the background (Photo: Ant\u00f4nia Felipe<\/a>).<\/div>\n

The Republic of Venice was one of the most powerful cities in Europe for centuries<\/strong>, as well as a great commercial power. Among its most famous figures are the merchant Marco Polo<\/strong> (1254-1324), whose travels took him to Central Asia and China; the great composer and Catholic priest Antonio Vivaldi<\/strong> (1678-1741), world-famous for his series of concerts \"The Four Seasons\"; the painter Titian<\/strong> (1488-1576), one of the most celebrated artists of the Renaissance; and the painter Tintoretto<\/strong> (1518-1594), a genius in the use of light in his works.<\/p>\n

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The Grand Canal in Venice (Photo: Edoardo Bortoli<\/a>).<\/div>\n

Venice is itself a masterpiece of engineering,<\/strong> with such admired wonders as the Rialto Bridge, inaugurated in 1591 and still in use (its image heads this entry). But some of Venice's great feats are not visible,<\/strong> since they are located underground in the city. Because it was built in a marshy area, its buildings rest on millions of wooden posts, many of which were originally used centuries ago and are still in good condition.<\/p>\n

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Centuries-old houses on the Grand Canal in Venice (Photo: Mark Boss<\/a>).<\/div>\n

A few months ago, Primal Space<\/a> published an excellent report on the genius engineering used to build and expand Venice<\/strong>, going over the history of the city from its origins and some of the ingenious solutions the Venetians found to solve problems that arose as the city grew:<\/p>\n