Unique cultural treasures: discover the Marciana National Library with the Venice City Pass

Historical book from the state library Marciana at the St Mark'S Square in Venice

Exterior view of the Marciana National Library in Venice

Archway in the Marciana National Library in Venice

Sculptures on the façade of the Marciana National Library in Venice

Highlights

With the Venice City Pass, you can experience the city’s most popular museums, attractions and guided tours – one ticket, everything included.
Your ticket for the National Library is already included in your City Pass.
No advance reservation is required for this attraction – your City Pass is your ticket

A rich collection of Greek, Latin and Oriental manuscripts
Almost a million works on site
Treasures from the early days of printing, as well as priceless manuscripts
Geographical maps and atlases, such as the famous 15th-century world map by Fra Mauro
A magnificent 16th-century building with works by important Venetian artists of the time

Marciana National Library: a collection of precious manuscripts and books dating back to the 16th century

What awaits you on site

The Marciana National Library, which belongs to St Mark’s Basilica, was built in the 16th century on St Mark’s Square and decorated with works by Titian, Tintoretto and many others. The first books in the national library were donated by a cardinal as early as 1468. Over the years, the library became the national library of the Republic of Venice – and is the last institution to have survived from that time. Today, it has one of the most important collections of Greek, Latin and Oriental manuscripts and specialises in Venetian history, classical philology and the collection of ancient geographical maps. The library’s collection of 900,000 works includes 13,000 manuscripts, 25,000 16th-century prints and as many as 2,884 incunabula – 15th-century prints, the early days of printing. The library’s treasures are immeasurable, including 12th-century editions of Homer, the oldest map of Venice and Marco Polo’s will.

How to get there

Clickhere
to see on google maps

Address:
Piazzetta S. Marco 7 30124 Venice, Italy

Good to know

Opening hours
Mon – Fri: 9.30 am – 3.30 pm
The library is closed on the following days: Every Sunday, 1 and 6 January, Easter Monday, 25 April, 1 May, 2 June, 15 August, 1 and 21 November, 8, 25 and 26 December

A free guided tour in Italian and English is held every second Sunday of the month at 2:30 pm. Registration for the tour is required and can be made by telephone: +390412407211 or by e-mail: biblioteca@marciana.venezia.sbn.it

Your ticket for the National Library is already included in your City Pass.