A building whose exterior has long been familiar to Venetians and visitors alike is opening to the public after years of disuse, decay and then renovation. Venetians got a locals-only preview last week.
The building, the 16th-century Procuratie Vecchie, was originally occupied by the Procurators of St Mark who administered vast wealth accumulated by the church and the city during Venice’s years of wealth and power, and were also responsible for its widows and orphans.
Its long arched galleries were copied across the Piazza San Marco when the the Procuratie Nuove was built more than a century later. The Nuove was occupied through the 1800s by Habsburg rulers and is partly occupied now by the Correr Museum.
The reconstruction, funded by the building’s current owners, the Generali insurance company, provides space for events, and for offices including for non-profits. A number of modern-design spaces are fitted within the building as well.
