Conservation in 1991 sponsored by the Boston Chapter of Save Venice, which also provided additional funding for maintenance and cleaning in 2010.

These carved marble pillars have flanked the ceremonial entrance to the Basilica di San Marco, located on the Piazzetta, for centuries. Traditionally referred to as the Pillars of Acre (Pilastri Acritani in Italian), they were once thought to have originated from the city of the same name in the eastern Mediterranean, and to have been taken as trophies commemorating the victory of the Venetian fleet over the Genoese in 1258.

Instead, the pillars were brought to Venice from Constantinople in 1204 among the many spoils of the Fourth Crusade. They were originally carved for the Palace Church of Saint Polyeuktos in Constantinople, commissioned by the Byzantine princess Anicia Juliana. A member of one of the most prominent noble families in the late Roman Empire, Anicia Juliana was also a direct descendent of the Emperor Theodosius the Great. In 524 she decided to rebuild the church of Saint Polyeuktos on an extremely grand and novel scale, meant to rival the biblical Temple of Solomon. Archaeological excavations in Istanbul uncovered the large foundation of this church and similar pillars, confirming that those in Venice were probably located on the lower story of this Byzantine church.

Each pillar is elaborately carved with two alternating decorative motifs: a stylized vine-stem growing from a vase, and a geometric pattern of scrolls with flattened vine leaves and bunches of grapes. The lower half of each pillar is decorated with a simple rectangular panel with a cross-and-orb front. Further research has indicated that three basket-capitals on the northern and southern corners of San Marco also originated from the same church in Constantinople.

The pillars were restored by conservators from the COREST firm, with the guidance of project director Grazia Fumo of the Superintendency of Monuments of Venice.

For select projects, conservation dossiers in Italian containing limited textual and photographic documentation may be available for consultation by appointment at the Venice office of Save Venice and the Rosand Library & Study Center. For inquiries, please contact us at venice@savevenice.org.

Unidentified Byzantine sculptor
So-Called Pillars of Acre from the Palace Church of Saint Polyeuktos in Constantinople
c. 524, marble
89.7 x 89 x 482 cm
89.9 x 74 x 492 cm