Albuquerque evening herald. [volume] (Albuquerque, New Mexico) 1911-1914, 1912-04-24
FAMOUS COMPANILE
OF GIOTTO GOOD
AS EVER
Beautiful Landmark Of Venice
Rebuilt With Infinite
Pains, 10 Be Dedicated on
April %.

- AfHAA@4 AA-4AAA - = sfensea ttfFaa
Rome, April 24.-As the Venetlans
stood about tho utter ruina OF their
campanlle, just ten years ago, 20
them u seemed irrevoca blv Loaf.
gone glimmering through the dreams
Of things that were" In those first
moments the disaster appeared lr-
remodiable. but still there IA their
tower today refaahioned Just as he
FORE, and they rub their eyes almost
thinking e al bad dream.
The campanlle fell on the morning
OF July ~. 1902, and already In tho
spring 81 the next year work had been
begun Oh the new structure, but not
oetore much time had been lost aid
ansly passions aroused over the form
u should take and where IL should
stand One party argued that the an
clients when one Of their great build-
ings was destroyed did not erect an
other jnsl like u Ia ita place, but built
the best which living architects could
produce. They also said that the old
tower had broken the symmetry of
the piazza and that thus the site OF
the new structure should be else
where The other party was for an
absolute reproduction OF the old tow
or and In the old place. and Il won the
day.
II was soon discovered that matters
might have been much worse than
they were; the campanile was indeed
rubbish heap. but out Of that rub
Dish came wonderful things, BELLS
cracked but not destroyed, pieces Of
marble showing the designs and
shapes OF what hGd been, old bricks
bearing the names OF all the emper-
ors, from Nero 20 Theodosius. tho
angel which stood on the top was
little injured, and 80 on.
After careful examination Il was
decided 20 use the old foundations
(too small for the weight which they
had been made 10 carry for 80 many
hundreds OF years. aa they were per-
feet. SO In 1893 the Count OF Turin,
with Pope Plus X, then Patriarch OF
Venice, TO bless Il, layed tho corner
stone OF the reincarnation, IN the
confer OF the original foundations.
Around them were driven. over an
area OF twelve feet, 2.O76 fresh larch-
wood piles. from cadore. the plies
being more or lesH. nine inches IN
diameter and twelve and half feet
long. Larch has two qualities which
makes perfect plies; they harden, al
most petrify, In tho peculiar clay OF
Venice. and they are straight They |
averaged twelve to every three square
feet. making total enlargement OF |
500 square yards. and were driven IN
by q 570-pound weight. raised four
feet ak inches. 10 absolute resistance.
However the work presented many
difficulties. as FOR instance. during
the driving, tho northwest corner
showed depression OF half foot.
due to difference OF SOIL SO longer
piles had 10 be selected and run
through sandy deposit into the clay
below.
On this bed Of piles we're placed
large blocks OF stone cemented to-
gether. which when finished, Il was
estimated, would hold a weight OF
10000 TONS while tho completed tow
er ls about 20. 1000 tons.
This work took two years. ana a
year after the structure was already
eighteen feet high. Work was then
suspended for over year, due to
so that tho end ..
1908 arrived before the shaft was
All this time artists were working
over the decomposition Of the beau-
liful LOggia di SansovlnO, which stood
AZ the foot OF the tower, q work OF
wonderful perseverance. as. FOR in
stance. the celebrated group OF thol
Madonna with Christ and 81. John, Ia
Terra Gotta. was broken into two thou
'and pieces, which have been patient
" picked out Of the debris, and, with
sven more patience. fitted together
n such manner that what Is really
patchwork appears a perfect whole;
hat ". the Madonna and Christ, but
mo 81. John was SO reduced to dust
nat not one piece was found. Thef
Tour bronze figures which stood IN
me inches are now there as before.
ana the marvellous gates which were
literally torn apart Into fragmentsl
have been reconstructed, piece BY
piece. perfect mosaic, an impossi-
Diiity Bat FIR old prints which gave
ne designs. The marble pillars are
practically the original ones, and
where the missing chips and pieces
'ould nos be found the necessary ma
erial was taken from the inside Of
he pillars themselves The only
'eally new things are the doors. which
IRE Of wood, but on the old model.
The tower as 4 now stands (und as
4 was when 4 eollapaed) Is 322 feet
ligh. the shaft, an absolute reproduce
ion, Is composed Of about 1900, 600
unprecedented bricks. each hand
nade over a wood fire according 60
antique measurements. Each was
esied before being put Ia place. and
( not absolutely perfect was rejected
rhc belfry looks out over the same
view. one Of It's PECULIAR
tees being that not canal can be
teen, and holds the recast bells and
he one old one which escaped in
Jury. the "Marangonn. the largest
lf all, which Was brought from Crete
centuries ago. over the belfry standRi