St. Mark's Basilica

St. Mark's Basilica stands at the eastern end of Piazza San Marco in the San Marco district of Venice, in Italy's Veneto region. It was built to house the relics of St. Mark the Evangelist, reputedly brought from Alexandria, and took its present Byzantine form in the 11th century. The plan is a Greek cross beneath five domes, a design that owes more to Constantinople than to the Romanesque and Gothic churches of mainland Italy. The facade is layered with marble columns, carved arches and mosaic lunettes, and the four gilded bronze horses on the loggia above the main portal are copies, with the originals kept inside the basilica museum. Inside, gold-ground mosaics cover roughly 8,000 square metres of ceilings, domes and upper walls, telling biblical stories in a dense, glittering sequence assembled over about eight centuries. The uneven marble floor, worn into gentle waves by settling and centuries of foot traffic, is a feature in its own right. Entry to the nave is free, but the most valued sections are ticketed separately: the Pala d'Oro, a jewelled gold altarpiece behind the high altar (about 5 euros), the Treasury of objects brought back after the Fourth Crusade (about 3 euros), and the museum with the terrace over the piazza (about 7 euros). Most visitors spend one to two hours, longer if all three sections are taken in. Queues form across the piazza from mid-morning, peaking between about 10AM and 3PM in high season, so the shortest waits come at opening time (9:45AM on weekdays and Saturdays) or in the last hour before closing. Sunday opening starts only at 2PM. The best photographs of the facade are taken from the far side of the piazza in soft morning or late-afternoon light, while the mosaics inside are best appreciated on a slow walk along the nave with the lights on. Bags larger than a small daypack are not allowed in, and modest dress covering shoulders and knees is expected. Photography inside is restricted, so visitors should look for posted signs. Hours shorten in winter, and the interior can be closed to sightseeing during services.