Campanile di San Marco by draguza
The Campanile di San Marco, or Belltower of St. Mark's, has stood for more than a thousand years--or for less than a century, depending on how you define "truth in advertising." Although "campanile" means "bell tower," the Campanile di San Marco did double duty as a military watchtower when it was constructed in the 10th Century. Later, as the tower was expanded and refined, its bronze-sheathed roof caught the sun's rays and acted as a daytime beacon for mariners.
The Campanile received an overhaul in the early 1500s after being damaged by an earthquake, giving it the profile that we see today. It also received its share of historic visitors, including Galileo (who showed the Doge his famous telescope in 1609), Goethe (who viewed the Adriatic from the arched windows), and Emperor Frederick III of the Holy Roman Empire, who is said to have ridden his horse up the tower in 1452.
