Fondaco dei Turchi, actually Natural History Museum of Venice
The Fondaco dei Turchi by night.
The Fondaco dei Turchi before its restoration in 1850.
The dinosaur of the Museum of the Natural History.
Fondaco dei Turchi e Museo di Storia Naturale
Fondaco dei Turchi, actually Natural History Museum of Venice
The Fondaco dei Turchi by night.
The Fondaco dei Turchi before its restoration in 1850.
The dinosaur of the Museum of the Natural History.
This building was built in the 1200s in a Venetian Romanesque style as the residence of the Pesaro family.
The Senate of the Venetian Republic used it to house guests of state in the 1300s before it was bought for the Dukes of Ferrara in 1381 when its large, richly decorated rooms were often used for lavish banquets and receptions.
Much later, in 1621, the Venetian Republic leased it to Turkish merchants in the city who established a “fondaco” there, using the spacious portico we can still see today as a protected area for loading their merchandise.
The importance of this fondaco began to decline as trade between Venice and the East diminished, until it had been completely abandoned by the end of the Venetian Republic.
The Austrians later restored the palace in 1858.
The Fondaco dei Turchi today houses the Museum of Natural History and its exhibition of the fauna and flora found in the lagoon. Founded in 1924, the museum also contains a collection of stuffed animals and rare dinosaurs and crustacean fossils.
1100 - 1200 - S. CROCE - rev. 0.1.6