Long-Lost Medieval Church Uncovered in Famous Venice Square

Traces of a long-lost medieval church are thought to have been uncovered in the Piazza San Marco—the iconic square that sits at the heart of Venice, Italy.

Archaeologists had been conducting excavations at the site, known as St. Mark's Square in English, as part of a project to restore the paving stones known as masegni.

It was during these works that archaeologists identified a series of walls and floor levels that they believe can be attributed to the church of San Geminiano, the Superintendency of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape for the Municipality of Venice and the Lagoon said in a Facebook post.

This church was constructed in the square during the early medieval period, which lasted from the late fifth century to the 10th century. It was destroyed and rebuilt over the subsequent centuries before finally being demolished in the early 19th century. But over time, the exact location of the church was lost, according to the superintendency.

"The discovery is very important for the study of the original Piazza San Marco, which was very different from how we see it today and about which very little is known," Sara Bini, director of the excavations in the square for the superintendency, told Newsweek. "Archival sources told us about this church dedicated to San Geminiano, however, its memory had been lost and it was not known exactly where it was located."

"At this point it is probable that the church of San Geminiano was moved at least three times, until its final demolition in 1807 by Napoleon, who built in its place the so-called 'Ala Napoleonica' visible today," Bini said.

In addition to the aforementioned walls and floor levels, the archaeologists also uncovered the remains of several people buried together in a tomb—a find that supports the church hypothesis.

In medieval times, it was common to bury people next to or inside places of worship, according to the superintendency. It was equally common to place multiple deceased people inside the same tomb, although not necessarily at the same time.

These findings make it highly likely that the walls and floors belonged to the church itself, providing researchers to investigate—at least in part—one of the oldest places of worship in Venice, the superintendency said.

The church of San Geminiano existed long before the famous Saint Mark's Basilica was built, and before the square took on its current shape. Thus, it can be considered one of the oldest churches in Venice, according to Bini.

The latest discoveries demonstrate how Venetians have always restored, dismantled and remade the square area.

"Piazza San Marco was not always as we see it today, it was very different and now it is not easy to imagine it with canals that crossed it and with churches that characterized it," the superintendency said.

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Update 03/01/24, 11:24 a.m. ET: This article has been updated to include additional comments from Sara Bini.