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Hidden corners

The lamps of the Fornaretto

The Madonna Orante in the little niche of the Basilica’s southern loggia: at her sides the two little lights come on
The Madonna Orante in the little niche of the Basilica’s southern loggia: at her sides the two little lights come on Photo: Jean-Pol GRANDMONT, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0

Every evening, when darkness falls on the Piazzetta, two little lamps light up at the sides of that niche. Popular belief links them to Venice’s most famous miscarriage of justice: the story of the ’poaro fornareto’ (the poor baker boy). The legend runs to 1507.

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