A beautiful room in the Palazzo
Antique shopping is always a part of our travel, and Venice is no exception. You never know where you might end up, but if you are truly interested in the products a merchant has, and you are polite, doors might open. Today we were casually walking toward Campo San Maurizio in San Marco and happened upon a shop we have visited many times called “V. Trois Antichita.” We were admiring a fabulous 18th century painting of young boys dressed as architects when the owner started talking with us. When he found out we were dealers, and that I was a designer, he asked if we would like to visit his “annex” a canal away. All I can say is this is why you don’t refuse the Venetian offer. You never know where it will take you.
We walked a canal away, and down a narrow sidewalk to what appeared to be a common entry door. Turns out, the “annex” was the palazzo where the owner was born and grew up! It was fabulous. We walked up to the “piano nobile” or first floor, and into a wonderland of 15th, 16th, 17th, and 18th century Venice. The palazzo was built in the 1600’s, and still maintained some original details. It had been burned in the 18th century, so some of the decoration was more of that period…..but it was all amazing. I could not focus on the antiques at hand because of the setting in which they were displayed. As you can tell from my photos, I didn’t even know what to shoot. The experience was fantastic, and it is great to see how Venetian houses really looked….and in some cases still do. The owner doesn’t live there anymore, but his mother does. He traded this splendor for “the simple life” of a one room studio. Much easier to maintain….and a lot less to dust.
Another view of the main salon
