Venice, Italy, Oct 31, 2018 / 12:29 pm
Saint Mark's Basilica in Venice flooded with nearly three feet of water this week, damaging part of the 1,000 year old marble mosaic floor inside.
The basilica "aged 20 years in one day," St. Mark's procurator Carlo Alberto Tesserin said.
Flood waters kept parts of the Madonna Nicopeia chapel's intricately designed floor under three feet of water for 16 hours, Tesserin said. The chapel, located in the cathedral's left transept, contains a 9th century Byzantine icon of Mary.
The baptistry and the Zen Chapel, named for Cardinal Giambattista Zen, who died in 1501, were completely flooded. The basilica's bronze doors and columns also sustained damage.