VENICE, Italy (AP) — Venice is marking the 700th anniversary of the death of Marco Polo with a year of commemorations, starting with the opening of Carnival season honoring one of the lagoon city’s most illustrious native sons.
Kicking off Carnival last weekend, some 600 rowers in period dress raised their oars in salute and shouted “We are all Marco Polo” as they rowed along the Grand Canal from St. Marks Square to the Rialto Bridge.
A man dressed as Marco Polo steps down the stairs of a bridge during the opening street show of the Carnival, in Venice, Italy, Saturday, Jan. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Other events planned for the year include a major exhibit at the Palazzo Ducale tracing Marco Polo’s 13th century travels to Asia. He chronicled his discoveries in his famous memoirs that gave Europe one of the best-written accounts of Asia, its culture, geography and people.
Venice Mayor Luigi Brugnaro said the figure of Marco Polo, as an explorer who managed to have dialogue with peoples of other cultures, is particularly relevant today. He said that is especially true for a city like Venice, which from the times it was a maritime republic and a center of trade has prided itself as a bridge between East and West.
In Venice this past weekend, a visitor dressed up as Marco Polo and a masked Carnival character carried a copy of his famous memoirs, “Il Milione,” which was translated into English under the title “The Travels of Marco Polo.”
A man dressed as Marco Polo during the opening street show of the Carnival, in Venice, Italy, Saturday, Jan. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
A man dressed as Marco Polo during the opening street show of the Carnival, in Venice, Italy, Saturday, Jan. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Marco Polo was born in Venice to a merchant family in 1254 and he died here in 1324 after a quarter-century exploring the Silk Road and serving the Mongol Court.
In Venice, a marble plaque affixed to the side of one of the city’s palazzi reads: “These were the homes of Marco Polo, who travelled to the farthest regions of Asia and described them.”
Boats sail during the traditional rowing parade, part of the Venice Carnival in Venice, Italy, Sunday Jan. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Boats sail during the traditional rowing parade, part of the Venice Carnival in Venice, Italy, Sunday Jan. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Street artist called ‘Arteare’ perform traditional expressions of oriental art between fakirism, dance and fire, during the opening street show of the Venice Carnival, in Venice, Italy, Saturday, Jan. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
A woman wearing a mask poses in front of the St. Marks church during the Venice Carnival in Venice, Italy, Sunday Jan. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
A man wears a mask and holds the replica a the book ‘The Million” a report of Marco Polo’s travels in Asia, during the Carnival in Venice, Italy, Sunday Jan. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Boats sail during the traditional rowing parade, part of the Venice Carnival in Venice, Italy, Sunday Jan. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
A banner reading in Italian ‘Carnival of Venice, to the East, the amazing journey of Marco Polo’ is displayed on a bridge during the opening day of the Venice Carnival, in Venice, Italy, Saturday, Jan. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
A placard reading in Italian ‘Here were the houses of Marco Polo who traveled the most distant regions of Asia and described them’ at the Marco Polo’s house during the Venice Carnival in Venice, Italy, Sunday Jan. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Boats sail during the traditional rowing parade, part of the Venice Carnival in Venice, Italy, Sunday Jan. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Boats sail during the traditional rowing parade, part of the Venice Carnival in Venice, Italy, Sunday Jan. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Boats sail as confetti flies on the air during the traditional opening rowing parade, part of the Venice Carnival in Venice, Italy, Sunday Jan. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
A man dressed as Arlecchino gestures with tourists during the Venice Carnival, Italy, Sunday Jan. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
