The Secrets Beneath The City Of Venice, Italy

Venetian houses and palaces are not built directly over water but rather on land that has been artificially created. The city of Venice is constructed on a series of small islands within a lagoon. To build on these marshy islands, Venetians drove wooden piles, primarily made of oak and fir, into the clay beneath the lagoon, creating a solid foundation.

On top of these wooden platforms, they built their structures using materials like Istrian stone. The islands themselves were expanded and stabilized by digging canals and using wooden stakes to shore up the banks.

While it may seem unusual to construct on logs submerged in water, this engineering technique has proven remarkably effective. The oxygen-poor, brackish water prevents the wood from decaying, while constant exposure to water over time strengthens it, transforming it into a material akin to stone.

This ingenious method has helped Venetian palaces retain their stability for more than 2,000 years.