Marciana

An edifice dating back to the Renaissance and located in the main square of Venice houses the National Library of St. Mark, Marciana. Its collections, besides a million printed publications, have almost 13,000 manuscripts, 2,883 first printed books, and 24,055 books from the 16th century. It houses the works by ancient scientists and philosophers. This “treasury” of information springs from the unique donation of books made to the Venetian Republic by the Cardinal Bessarion of Nicea in 1469.