page_title: St Mark's Clocktower
section_title: The construction of the tower and the clock
hierarchical_section_title: St Mark's Clocktower / The construction of the tower and the clock
caption_attribution_description: English: Soldiers of the British Army on Leave in Venice, Italy, June 1945 Driver C W (Bill) Hoe of Mansfield, Notts, and Driver F G (Freddie) Talbot of Brentford, Middlesex, both of whom have been overseas for over 2 years, in the Piazza San Marco. In the background is the famous clock which tells the time, season, month and day of the year.
context_page_description: The Clock Tower in Venice is an early Renaissance building on the north side of the Piazza San Marco, at the entrance to the Merceria. It comprises a tower, which contains the clock, and lower buildings on each side. It adjoins the eastern end of the Procuratie Vecchie. Both the tower and the clock date from the last decade of the 15th century, though the mechanism of the clock has subsequently been much altered. It was placed where the clock would be visible from the waters of the lagoon and give notice to everyone of the wealth and glory of Venice. The lower two floors of the tower make a monumental archway into the main street of the city, the Merceria, which linked the political and religious centre with the commercial and financial centre. Today it is one of the 11 venues managed by the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia.
context_section_description: By 1490 an old clock at the north-west corner of St Mark's church, the clock of St Alipio, was in a very bad state and in 1493 the Senate commissioned  the construction of a new clock. The making of the clock was entrusted to a father and son, Gian Paolo and Gian Carlo Ranieri, of Reggio Emilia In 1495 the Senate decided that a tower to hold the clock should be erected at the point where the street known as the Merceria leaves the Piazza. Buildings were demolished to make room for it and building started in 1496.
  The design of the tower is generally attributed on grounds of style (though without documentary evidence) to Mauro Codussi. The Merceria passes through the archway at the foot of the tower. It is one of the principal streets of the city and leads to the Rialto. Deborah Howard explains how the idea was probably derived by Codussi from Alberti's work 'De re aedificatoria' ("About Building"), published earlier in the 15th century, where he emphasises the importance of towers to a city and the appropriateness of a monumental archway as the entrance to its principal street.
  The name of the sculptor who modelled the figures of the Moors is not known for certain. They have been most often attributed to Paolo Savin, but an article published in 1984 reached the conclusion that the most likely candidate is Antonio Rizzo. They were cast in bronze in 1494 by Ambrosio Delle Anchor.
  The tower was built during 1496 and 1497 and the mechanism of the clock was then built into it under the supervision of the Ranieri. No expense was spared in the decoration of the tower and the clock, using quantities of ultramarine and gold leaf. Even the 'Moors' were originally gilded. The inauguration of both tower and clock took place on 1 February 1499. Sanudo wrote in his diary for this day that the clock was uncovered and seen for the first time as the Doge was leaving the Piazza to go to hear vespers at Sta Maria Formosa, adding that it was made with great ingenuity and was most beautiful.
  Codussi died in 1504 and the wings on either side of the tower were added by 1506 (perhaps to give greater stability to the whole). Barbari's great woodcut of Venice dated 1500 shows the newly built clock tower before the wings were built, rising high above the original 12th-century Procuratie on either side.  These Procuratie were lower than the present buildings, with only one storey above the arches on the ground floor, so that the tower then rose high above all the buildings on that side of the Piazza.
  The wings are sometimes attributed to Pietro Lombardi, who was later to rebuild the Procuratie on the same side of the Piazza, but the wings are of no great distinction and more probably designed by Gonella who was then the proto (buildings manager) of St Mark's. The wings were also  originally two storeys lower than today, with the roof at the level of the existing terraces. A drawing by Canaletto shows the tower before the increase in the height of the wings. This makes the tower itself appear higher so that it makes a more positive statement as the grand entrance to a great city.
  By 1500, when the final account for the tower was passed, the elder Raineri had died. It was arranged that his son should remain in Venice to look after the clock and he was granted flour concessions which  would give him a good income. He lived in Venice until his death in 1531.
caption: The clock tower in 1945 soon after liberation
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