It is the only waterfront in Venice called a molo (quay): the stretch of fondamenta (canalside walkway) in front of the Piazzetta, between the Ponte della Paglia and the Ponte della Zecca. For centuries whoever arrived by sea set foot here — trading ships and warships, ambassadors, goods: it was the water gate of the Serenissima (the Republic of Venice), watched over by a war galley permanently moored in front of the Palace.