History & Preservation

Vittore Carpaccio’s Lion of Saint Mark in the Palazzo Ducale

Vittore Carpaccio (c. 1465–c. 1526) | Palazzo Ducale

Donors

Restored in 2021 with funding from Jill and Richard Almeida.

History

This iconic canvas was long believed to have been executed for the Palazzo dei Camerlenghi, the treasury office located at the foot of the Rialto bridge. However, recent studies have demonstrated that the work was commissioned in 1516 by five Venetian patricians who served as the administrators of the Ufficio del Dazio del Vino, the office responsible for levying duties on wine.

The lion of Saint Mark stands with his front paws planted firmly on land and his rear paws immersed in the sea, referring to the two realms of the Venetian dominion: the Stato da Terra and the Stato da Mar. The winged lion was not only the symbol of the Evangelist but also of the Republic itself. According to one of Venice’s most cherished foundation myths, Saint Mark had made an early, proselytizing mission to Venice before traveling on to Alexandria. While passing through the lagoon on a small boat, he experienced a vision in which an angel addressed him with the words “Pax tibi Marce, Evangelista meus” (Peace be with you, Mark, my Evangelist), thereby prophesying his return to Venice following his martyrdom in Egypt. And, indeed, the relics of the saint were returned to Venice from Alexandria in the year 828. The prophetic phrase appears on the pages of the lion’s open book, thus confirming the saint’s protection of, and continuing favor towards, Venice.

Vittore Carpaccio Lion of Saint Mark Palazzo Ducale
Vittore Carpaccio, "Lion of Saint Mark," after conservation. Photo: Matteo De Fina

The intermingling of divine predestination and civic identity is made concrete in the meticulous representation of the area around the Piazza San Marco, from the seat of the government at the Doge’s Palace to the Basilica of San Marco, the ducal chapel and preordained home of the relics of the evangelist. The saint’s favor was not limited to the governance of the state, for the lion’s protective wingspan extends above the galleys that represent the formidable mercantile prowess of Venice. And indeed, the ships are depicted en route from the fortress of San Nicolò al Lido to the Dogana da Mar, the customs house.

The detailed background not only demonstrates Carpaccio’s skill in landscape painting but also provides a historic testament to the cityscape of early 16th-century Venice. The precise depiction of the Piazza San Marco includes the updated spire of the Clock Tower, a project that had been completed in 1515. On the right-hand side, the faithful view of Venice as seen from the Ducal Palace illustrates the Punta della Dogana, the Island of San Giorgio Maggiore, the Fortresses of Sant’Andrea and San Nicolò del Lido, and boats sailing through the Bacino San Marco.

Conservation

Vittore Carpaccio’s Lion of Saint Mark underwent careful maintenance and revision treatment in 2021. Conservator Gea Storace of the Provinciali firm meticulously removed surface grime, discolored varnish, and chromatically altered repainting from previous conservation interventions.

The painting was featured in the Venetia 1600: Births and Rebirths exhibition at Palazzo Ducale in 2021–2022 and the Vittore Carpaccio: Master Storyteller of Renaissance Venice exhibitions at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. from November 2022–February 2023 and Palazzo Ducale, Venice from March 2023–June 2023.

About the Artwork

Vittore Carpaccio (c. 1465–c. 1526)
Lion of Saint Mark
1516, oil on canvas
130 x 368 cm

For Further Reading

Ferrara, Daniele. Carpaccio e lo spazio simbolico del bacino marciano. Il ritratto del doge Leonardo Loredan e il leone di San Marco. In Guidoni, Enrico and Ugo Soragni, eds. Lo spazio nelle città venete (1348-1509). Rome: Edizioni Kappa, 1997, pp. 203-216.

Matino, Gabriele and Patricia Fortini Brown, eds. Carpaccio in Venice: A Guide. Venice: Marsilio, 2020.

Romanelli, Giandomenico, ed. Carpaccio. Vittore e Benedetto da Venezia all’Istria. Venice: Marsilio, 2015.

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