La Piera del Bando (The Proclamation Stone, Venice)

At left, near the portico of St. Mark’s Basilica, a man stands on a short, stout column—the Proclamation Stone, a fragment of ancient porphyry brought back to Venice from Syria during the Fourth Crusade (1202-4). He is the comandador, who reads out legal announcements to the public. The building with the long facade is the Doge’s palace, the seat of Venetian government. In the distance, we see the church of S. Giorgio Maggiore and its tower. The two columns bear statues representing the city’s patron saints: a lion for Mark, and a warrior for Theodore.