Museum Planet

The 'Pala d'Oro' is San Marco's priceless altarpiece, made of gold, enamel and jewels. Some of its parts are from the 10th and 12th Centuries, and some are later. It cannot be seen from the main corridor of the church unless it is picked up and turned around toward the worshippers. Most times, one must walk up to the chancel and behind St. Mark's sarcophagus to see it.

Now the altarpiece is behind glass to protect it. That also makes it more difficult to see. It's likely that the original altar frontal was not in this form exactly, but underwent several transformations as sections were added over several centuries. Some sections were made by Byzantine artists commissioned by Venice. What is now the upper portion of the altarpiece was captured from the Church of the Pantocrator in Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade in 1204. This is a supreme irony; that Venice, once a part of the Byzantine Empire and also Christian, later laid siege to Constantinople and helped loot it.

The narrative cycles on the 'Pala d'Oro' include scenes from the life of St. Mark, up to his internment in this basilica, and scenes from the life of Christ; archangels, saints, and apostles.

The goldsmiths who carefully constructed the parts and added to them were probably Venetian 14th Century, and the name of Gianpaolo Boninsegna has been mentioned as one of the artists. The altar screen is about 12 feet long and 5 feet high. The horizontal rectangular screen is divided into two parts and consists of over 80 panels.