Description

The small framed picture is a print of an 18th-century painting depicting a Venetian festival scene. The artwork shows the Doge (the elected head of Venice) in his magnificent, gilded ceremonial barge, known as the Bucentaur.
Details of the Artwork
Subject: The scene likely portrays the annual Ascension Day ceremony (Festa della Sensa), where the Doge would be rowed out to the Adriatic Sea to perform the “Marriage of the Sea,” a symbolic act of casting a ring into the water to symbolize Venice’s dominion over the sea.
Artist: Francesco Guardi, in the 18th century.

The Bucentaur: The large red and gold ship at the center is the state barge, which was destroyed in 1798 on Napoleon’s orders. The last and most magnificent one made its maiden voyage in 1729.

This type of print was a popular souvenir for wealthy visitors undertaking the “Grand Tour” of Europe in the 1700s.