Mazzorbo Historical Timeline

Origins

Mazzorbo was settled in the early Middle Ages by mainland refugees, in the same movement into the lagoon that produced Torcello and eventually Venice. It grew into a real town with churches, monasteries and trade.

Turning points

Its decline was the lagoon's usual story: the channels silted, malaria took hold, and the population moved to Venice and Burano. Monasteries closed and churches were demolished; most of the island reverted to garden.

Influential people

The church of Santa Caterina, of the fourteenth century, is the one substantial survivor, and its bell of 1318 is among the oldest still in use in Italy.

Cultural evolution

The island stayed agricultural, supplying Burano and Venice with fruit and vegetables from walled plots.

Present-day significance

The Dorona, a golden native grape grown in the lagoon for centuries, was nearly wiped out by the salt of the 1966 flood. Surviving vines were traced and propagated, and a walled vineyard was replanted on Mazzorbo in the 2000s -- so the island's oldest crop is also its newest project.