The oldest cathedral in the lagoon
Today Torcello, in the northern lagoon beyond Burano, is a quiet, almost deserted island of meadows, canals and a few houses, with fewer than twenty inhabitants. Yet between the seventh and tenth centuries it was the most important centre of the lagoon, with perhaps ten thousand inhabitants, palaces and churches, founded by the people of the Roman city of Altinum fleeing the barbarian invasions. Malaria and the silting of the canals then led to its decline in favour of Venice.
Of its splendour remain two extraordinary churches. The Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, founded in 639, is the oldest building in the lagoon: inside, the western wall is covered by a huge Byzantine mosaic of the Last Judgement from the twelfth century, with the damned among the flames and the elect in paradise, while in the golden apse the tall, slender figure of the Madonna Hodegetria stands alone on a gold background, one of the most moving images of Byzantine art. Beside it is the small church of Santa Fosca, with a central plan surrounded by a portico. In the meadow stands a stone seat called the Throne of Attila, though it has nothing to do with the king of the Huns. Ernest Hemingway stayed at the island's inn, the Locanda Cipriani.
Tip: climb the bell tower for a view over the lagoon; visit in the late afternoon, when the day trippers have left.
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