Entrance to the Old Jewish Ghetto, Venice

This gateway marks the main way in and out of Venice’s Old Jewish Ghetto—and for centuries, it was far more than a simple passage. After a decree issued on March 29, 1516, guarded gates were installed here, turning this entrance into a nightly checkpoint rather than a courtesy.

At sunset, the gates were shut tight, sealing the Jewish community inside. They stayed that way until morning, when the deep voice of the Marangona—the great bell of Saint Mark’s Basilica—announced the start of a new day. That sound wasn’t just atmospheric; it was the official signal that the locks could be undone. Of course, rules have a way of meeting reality. A few determined night owls reportedly found that a well-placed payment could persuade guards to look the other way...

This routine carried on for nearly three centuries, until events elsewhere in Europe caught up with these walls. In 1796, Napoleon and his troops arrived, and not long after, the gates—by then symbols of enforced isolation—were torn down and burned. With that, this entrance lost its role as a barrier and became what it is today: a quiet threshold into a neighborhood shaped as much by endurance and ingenuity as by restriction.