Winter is coming and we are going to approach the seasonal cold and the typical foggy days. In the next months Venice will experience the classical high tide, a phenomenon that has affected the city since it was created.
The first traces of high tide go back to the V century when the first explorers visited the city.
Today is a phenomenon that happens more often than the past and even if it usually starts in November and ends in March, we also experienced some high tides in August and September!
High tide follows a cycle of 12 hours and when the water hits its peak it usually stays high for 3 to 4 hours and then it goes back.
But, do you know what really happens during high tide?
First of all, high tide is influenced by the moon phases, so most of the time it's predictable and the citizens of Venice know when it's going to happen. It is not related to the rain, as the high tide comes even on sunny days! You can prepare yourself and check daily how high the tide will be by checking the official website of
Comune di Venezia
(the L
ocal Government
):
https://www.comune.venezia.it/it/content/centro-previsioni-e-segnalazioni-maree
Second thing to know is that during high tide St. Mark's square and Rialto Bridge are the first ones to go under water (as they are the lowest points of Venice) while the rest of the city stays dry. To experience this phenomenon it is sufficient that the tide reaches 80cm to be visible in St. Mark Square. Usually, it’s only when the water rises above 130 cm from sea level that more than 60% of Venice island goes under water.
What do we do during high tide?
Even if it may seem problematic to move around or to go to work, Venetians are used to this phenomenon and they simply prepare themselves adequately.
Most of the shops stay open and protect themselves with a barrier, the municipality prepares some walkways and people wear boots to walk around as they need to stay dry. That's exactly what we do inside our gallery! We stay open even if the water comes inside the gallery and we protect our desk with boots!
We are happy to say that in the past few months the municipality started to work on St. Mark’s Square to create a mini barrier while new valves will block the rising water from the drainage channels that run under the pavement on which the work continues. This will help us to protect the Basilica and the Square.
Don’t let yourself be scared by this event, take the opportunity to see Venice in this season: It can be an amazing experience!!
We suggest you to wear your favorite boots and visit Ca D’oro, Doge’s Palace and St. Mark’s Basilica… And of course, come to the gallery to say hi and to show us your best
high-tide-outfit
!