This museum exhibits numerous exhibits, including: a model of the last “Buchintoro” – a floating palace where the Doge went to “get engaged to the sea”, models of modern ships, torpedoes from the Second World War, models of Venetian fortresses, old uniforms, boats, boats and gondolas. An entertaining element of the exposition: in the last room of the top floor, thousands of identical sea shells are exhibited in wooden cabinets – a collector’s gift.
History
Initially, the historical building of the Museum of the History of the Navy was used as a barn for storing grain, which can now be seen from its simple architectural ensemble. Later, at the end of the 17th century, the premises were transferred to the ownership of the Venice Arsenal and began to be used for storing ship parts and ship models.
The building of the Museum of the History of the Navy received the name “House of Models” because of its purpose. This is the place where various models of ships were collected, the design of which was later used in the construction of real ships. In 1797, during the French occupation, the House of Models was plundered. All the relics, weapons and trophies of the Venetian Republic, which were kept within the walls of the building, were taken to France. After the end of the war, the Austrians helped to restore the lost collection, which marked the beginning of the formation of a history museum in the Arsenal building.
The Museum of the History of the Navy is located on the left side of the Venice Arsenal. It has 5 floors and a huge exhibition area, divided into 42 halls. In addition, there is a court pavilion nearby, which occupies about 1250 m² and is located in three buildings at once. Also known as the Paddle Workshop, this pavilion is used to store large boats that simply won’t fit in the main museum building.
The external facade of the museum is very poor and unremarkable (except for a huge real anchor at the entrance to the building), which cannot be said about the internal interior. The pride of the museum is the 45-meter Buchintoro (the ship carrying the Doge). The entire boat, once richly decorated with gold jewelry and sculptures made by the master Alessandro Vittoria, has preserved only a part of them to this day.
In general, the museum contains more than 25 thousand excellent exhibits, among which there are portraits of famous Venetian admirals, a real guided torpedo with a steam engine, wax figures of naval officers in full dress, a collection of naval clothing and hats from all over the world and many others. no less interesting things.
Address: Venice, Castello, 2148, campo San Biagio.
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