Palazzo Contarini Fasan

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TypeResidential
Architectural styleGothic
LocationSan Marco district, Venice, Italy
Coordinates45°25′54.31″N 12°20′03.37″E / 45.4317528°N 12.3342694°E / 45.4317528; 12.3342694
Palazzo Contarini Fasan
Palazzo Contarini Fasan
Interactive map of the Palazzo Contarini Fasan area
General information
TypeResidential
Architectural styleGothic
LocationSan Marco district, Venice, Italy
Coordinates45°25′54.31″N 12°20′03.37″E / 45.4317528°N 12.3342694°E / 45.4317528; 12.3342694
Construction stopped15th century
Technical details
Floor count3 levels

Palazzo Contarini Fasan is a small Gothic palace in Venice, Italy, located in the San Marco district and overlooking the Grand Canal. The palazzo is also called the House of Desdemona.[1][2] Palazzo Venier Contarini is on the right side.

Palazzo Contarini Fasan is a peculiar structure built in the 15th century and once owned by the Contarini family. Over the centuries, the palazzo has attracted substantial attention as a home of Desdemona, a character from Shakespeare's Othello.[3][4]

According to a legend, Nicola Contarini, a famous heroic leader in the wars against the Turks in the 1500s, once lived in the palazzo. He was said to have had the very dark skin so as to be nicknamed "Moor". Contarini's wife, Palma Querini was exhausted by the brutal jealousy of her husband, so she returned to her family. Another legend says that Shakespeare's Othello in fact was modeled after Cristoforo Moro (hence the nickname "the Moor"). Moro was Admiral of the Venetian fleet. In 1515, he married a daughter of Donato from Lezze, nicknamed "White Devil" (hence the name "Desdemona"). In 1508, Moro lost his wife while travelling to Crete under dubious circumstances.[3]

Architecture

References

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