The striking Saint Mark’s Basilica is not only one of the absolute masterpieces of Byzantine sacred architecture, but it is also the final resting place of the Evangelist’s body.  Few, however, are aware of the adventurous history that brought the famous relic there.

Saint Mark was believed to have established a Christian church in Alexandria around the year 49 A.D.  After his death his body was buried under the church for centuries according to a story that inextricably mixed fact with legend. In 828 AD, two Venetian merchants were traveling through Alexandria where they decided to stop off to worship the relics of the saint.  After hearing that the church was soon to be desecrated by the Saracens, then the rulers of Egypt, they hatched a plan to steal the body and transport it back to Venice where it could rest safely.

In order to smuggle the invaluable relic out of Alexandria, the merchants resorted to a trick whose legendary description still delights the Venetians: The body of Saint Mark was taken out of the sarcophagus and unwrapped from its silk shroud, the relic being replaced by another, less eminent saint. It was then placed in a chest and taken on board the Venetian ship, the merchants first ensuring that the saint’s remains were covered by a layer of pork and cabbage. When the Muslim officials opened the chest to inspect it, they cried out ‘Kanzir, kanzir’ (“Pig, pig”) at the sight and smell of the pork. Thus, the Evangelist was safely conveyed to Venice where the merchants were welcomed as heroes. 

Saint Mark’s body was placed in a special chapel in the Doge’s palace, and construction of a basilica worthy of Venice and of Saint Mark began almost immediately. Initiated in 829, it was hastily constructed and completed in 832. This Church was irreparably damaged during a tumultuous 976 rebellion against the very unpopular Doge Pietro Candiano IV. The present basilica was built on the ashes of the previous church.  The oldest and most precious mosaic (1260-1270) of the façade of Saint Mark depicts the transportation of the Evangelist’s relics, showing his body being devoutly carried into the basilica.  

According to another legend, about one hundred years into the construction of the now increasingly sprawling basilica, the ecclesiastical authorities had completely forgotten where the invaluable relic was originally hidden. Various explanations of the unthinkable were hastily made up, but none of them seemed enough to placate the furor, bewilderment and desperation of the Venetians.

Once again, the long-deceased Saint Mark demonstrated how much he cared for the city.  One of his arms miraculously appeared from a pillar.  The body once found, was placed in a sarcophagus at the high altar and the basilica was solemnly consecrated in 1094. The Venetian painter Tintoretto (1518-1594) created an impressive body of art to celebrate the discovery as well as the moment in which Saint Mark’s body had arrived in Venice.

Today, visitors are still awed by the incredibly rich interior of the basilica. We can attribute this to a 1075 law passed by the doge requiring all the Venetians ships to bring back something precious with which to enrich and decorate the the city’s religious center. This is why today, besides the stunning cycle of mosaics, we can admire hundreds of beautiful columns of the rarest and most valuable marbles, alabaster, jasper and porphyry that were all taken from buildings of the Middle and Far East and brought back to Venice in compliance with the 1075 law. 

In Saint Mark’s Square there is also a marvelous bronze statue of a lion standing atop a column of Egyptian granite, brought to Venice during the 12th century. The column with the winged lion remained in Venice until the fall of the Republic of Venice, when Napoleon moved it to Paris with other spoils of his war. Returned after Napoleon’s fall in 1815, the column has been moved from its pedestal only twice, first at the end of the 1800s for restoration, and again during the Second World War for safekeeping.

There are also several impressive winged lions carved in relief on the façade of the Doge’s Palace that include coats of arms of popes Pius X, John XXIII and John Paul I. All contain the Lion of St. Mark in recognition of their previous position as Patriarchs of Venice.  Not found only in the square, the Lion of Saint Mark sits atop the pinnacle of the basilica where it has been the symbol of the city of Venice for almost one thousand years. 

But how did a winged lion come to represent Mark the Evangelist?  The basis of this Christian artistic tradition is complex and entirely biblical.  In Revelation 4:7, each of the four Evangelists (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) was symbolized by a different living creature.  In Mark's case it was the lion, eventually a winged one.  In Venice, every representation of the lion is shown to have its paws resting both on land and sea. This is to symbolize that dual dominion of the Republic of Venice, expressed in the Venetian language as Stato de Tera and Stato de Ma’ (State of the Land and State of the Sea).

The Feast of St Mark in Venice, called La Festa di San Marco, is celebrated on the 25th of April. It is also a public holiday in which schools, universities and most businesses are closed. One of the highlights of the tradition is still the Regata di Traghetti, a boat race featuring gondoliers who compete against each other in speed and ability while transporting passengers in their gondolas. 

Another beloved tradition associated with St Mark’s festival is the Festival of the Blooming Rose. According to legend, the tradition originated in the 8th century shortly before the arrival of the body of Saint Mark in Venice. A man of low social standing had fallen in love with a noblewoman. In order to win her father's approval to their marriage, he volunteered to go to fight in a war. Though mortally wounded in battle, he managed with his remaining strength to pluck a rose from a nearby rosebush for his loved one. Before dying he asked one of his companions to return the now blood-stained rose to his beloved. The custom of giving a rose bud (bocolo) to a loved one is still practiced today in Venice.