Italy, Venice, Piazza San Marco and Birds
Submitted by Tamer Hartevioglu on Wed, 2008-09-03 22:04.
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Piazza San Marco, often known in English as St Mark's Square, is the principal square of Venice, Italy.
A remark often attributed to Napoleon (but perhaps more correctly to Alfred de Musset) calls the Piazza San Marco "The drawing room of Europe". The Piazza originated in the 9th century as a small area in front of the original St Mark's Basilica. It was enlarged to its present size and shape in 1177, when the Rio Batario, which had bounded it to the west, and a dock, which had isolated the Doge's Palace from the square, were filled in. The rearrangement was for the meeting of Pope Alexander III and the Emperor Frederick Barbarossa.