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Door Heads, From Ca’ Contarini Porta di Ferro; and in Campo S. Margarita. [f.p.340,r]
PLATE 111
DOOR-HEADS
From Ca’ Contarini Porta di Ferro; and in Campo S. Margherita
THE doorways of Venice are almost always constructed on the principle explained in the text,2 chap. xvii. sect. 2; that is to say, formed by an arch or gable above a horizontal lintel, the enclosed space or tympanum being sometimes left open, and merely defended by iron bars; sometimes filled with masonry, and charged with ornament...3
The Plate represents two characteristic headings of doors above the lintels. The upper one is from a palace once belonging to a branch of the Contarini family, behind the church of St. Francesco.4 It has the hand of blessing, and the presiding angel unfolds a scroll with the inscription, “Peace be to this House.” The bearings on the shield have been effaced, and the modern Venetians, who have no particular desire of peace, and therefore not much regard for the old inscription, have thought the lintel of the door would be put to better purpose by bearing the information highly useful to the general public, that it was in the “Salizzada di San Francesco.”
1 [Plates 11-15 formed Part III. of the Examples, issued on November 17, 1851. No more were published. Plate 11 is here reduced from 18½ x 11 to 7¼ x 4¼.]
2 [i.e. Stones of Venice, vol. i.: see Vol. IX. p. 221.]
3 [Here in the original edition followed the words, “The methods of doing this are various and beautiful; but in the earlier ages...,” continuing down to “retained” as in Stones of Venice, vol. ii. ch. vii. § 56 (Vol. X. pp. 323-324), to which place Ruskin transferred the account of Venetian door-heads given in this part of the Examples, published, as we have seen, before the second volume of the main work had been written. Writing to his father from Venice (December 7, 1852), he says with regard to this Plate: “I am very glad indeed you like the Contarini mezzotint. You will also find, I believe, what I thought rather a nice bit in the text about it.”]
4 [For further particulars of this palace, see below, Venetian Index, p. 368.]
340
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[Version 0.04: March 2008]
