Venice - Arsenal

(Local Name: Arsenale) The Arsenal was the Shipyard of Venice - until the end of the 17th century the largest and busiest in the world. Founded in 1104, it was continuously expanded and in its heyday employed as many as 16,000 workmen. The Arsenal was a prohibited area and accessible by one land and one sea approach only. Every workman was privy to its secrets and, therefore, subject to security checks, which was how the Republic managed to keep its art of shipbuilding secret until about 1550.

The landward entrance (Ingresso di Terra) is a triumphal arch in the Renaissance style. The lions on each side of the entrance come from Greece, booty brought back by Francesco Morosoni in the 17th century after the reconquest of the Peloponnese. Of the two lions on the left, the larger one stood guard over the port of Piraeus while its fellow stood on the road from Athens to Eleusis.