The Beauty of the Interior of St Marks Cathedral in Venice, Italy

The interior of St Mark’s cathedral is located in Venice, Italy. The current St Mark’s cathedral was the second after the original St Mark’s cathedral, which is located in Doge’s Palace, burnt down in 976. The current form was finished in 1063. The exterior is a beautiful architectural achievement and has been altered many times throughout the centuries. Outside are many sculptures such as horses and the Tetrarchs. The interior is considered just as, if not more beautiful than the exterior.

The interior of St. Mark’s cathedral is structured after a Greek cross. This means that each side has a central Dome and from that Dome side aisles extend outward. The floor is made of marble and is made up of geometric patterns. There is around 8,000 meters of mosaics that cover the walls and ceilings. Since the interior was completed over a number of centuries, you can tell what century each mosaic was painted by the subject. For example, mosaics completed in the 12th century have a central theme of the New Testament. If you were looking at a mosaic depicting a scene from the Old Testament, it was most likely completed after the 12th century. Other symbolic scenes depicted on the walls are the Virgin Mary, the Stories from the book of Genesis, the martyrdoms of St. Peter and St. Clement, as well as many other biblical stories. The main color of the interior is golden. In fact, with the lights shining in on the cathedral, every mosaic has a golden hue to it. The main colors that make up the mosaics are red, blue, and green. These colors tend to be in the shades you would find in most mosaics in churches. Similarly, the figures are depicted in a realistic way but in a style that tends to be found in religious works.

The interior art of a location that can be compared to the interior of St. Mark’s cathedral is perhaps the most famous interior of all time. The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel is known as some of the most beautiful artwork to ever exist. The ceiling was painted by Michelangelo and is located in the Vatican City. Even though the interior of St. Mark’s cathedral may be less famous than the Sistine Chapel, the artwork is still comparable. The main similarity that both buildings artwork has is the overall theme. Both St Mark’s cathedral and the Sistine Chapel feature a religious theme. In fact, both buildings have the works of art depicting the same stories from the bible that just appear differently due to different artists crafting them. Overall the idea is still the same. Both feature the style of art that is typically found in churches or religious establishments. The figures are realistic, but are stylized in a religious way. After comparing pictures of different works from inside the church I would say the Sistine Chapel features more variety of colors then the interior of St. Mark’s cathedral. St Mark’s cathedral mostly relies on blue, red, and green in one shade while the Sistine Chapel features colors a varying shades and pinks and oranges in different works. Overall, both interiors are considered amongst the most beautiful in the world. The Sistine Chapel is more famous and well known but that doesn’t make the interior of St. Mark’s cathedral any less impressive. The interior still must be considered a beautiful example of religious art.

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