Palazzo Barbarigo

Palazzo Barbarigo is a Renaissance palace facing Venice’s Grand Canal, with a façade covered in Murano glass mosaics. The palace dates from the sixteenth century in Venice. Owners connected with Murano’s glass industry added the colourful façade decoration in 1886, inspired by Saint Mark’s Basilica. Its open loggias and decorated columns face the canal. The Renaissance arrangement includes a piano nobile and a secondo piano nobile above the canal-facing loggia. Murano glass remains part of the palace’s story. In the 1920s, Pauly & C. used Palazzo Barbarigo as headquarters for its Murano glass company. A showroom also occupies part of the building. The vivid mosaics once appeared too conspicuous beside older palaces, yet they help define this Grand Canal landmark. Palazzo Barbarigo joins Venetian architecture with Murano glassmaking. Its façade reflects a later chapter in Venice’s architectural history, while its structure retains the character of a Renaissance palace. The Grand Canal remains its defining Venetian setting. Alongside the mosaics, the open galleries and columns show how the palace combines ornament with a clear architectural plan.