Staircase of the Giants

Brief information

The Giants' Staircase was a passage to the second floor of the Doge's Palace, but it functioned as a state stage. It stands in the palace courtyard by the western facade of the ceremonial courtyard, so the arrangement itself is already important: this is not a hidden service staircase, but a place facing the official space.

The staircase was created after the palace fire of 1483 to a design by Antonio Rizzo. Later, the upper landing became the place where the doges were crowned, while Senate decrees were proclaimed on the flights and important receptions began or ended there. Because of this, the steps read not only as an architectural detail, but also as a device for public power: movement upward here immediately turned into ceremony.

What to notice first

It makes sense to compare three levels of decoration. Below and on the flights you can see relief carving, classical pilasters, and intarsia — inlays of patterned and multicolored marble. On the supports of the railings stand marble baskets with ripe fruit: this was a wish for a successful career, built directly into the path upward. Next to the round medallions with coats of arms are nikes, goddesses of victory, so the coats of arms look not merely like signs of owners or authority, but like part of a triumphal program.

The upper landing explains the staircase's name. There stand two enormous marble figures of Mars and Neptune: they signify the power of the Venetian Republic on land and at sea. Above all this, on the facade, is the lion of Saint Mark, the symbol of Venice. The result is a vertical scheme: from decorative marble and wishes for career advancement, to the gods of war and the sea, and higher still to the city's symbol.