The Palazzo dei Dieci Savi is a 16th-century palace that used to house the old Republic of Venice's finance minister until 1797. Antonio Abbondi was the architect in charge of its construction. Until a few years ago, it was the office of Venice's water management department. It is located just by the Rialto Bridge and the Grand Canal.
Architecture
The palace has a façade on the Ruga degli Osei and another one on the Grand Canal. The first one has a portico, made of 37 arches, whose ceiling, is covered with frescoes and crossed vaults, most of which are in good condition.
The two upper floors, separated by two thick cornices, have 37 mullioned windows with rough stone frames. At the top, there is a mullioned crown corresponding to the attic. The canal's facade is identical and has four arcades on the bottom and five rectangular double mullioned windows on the upper floors.
The only two decorative elements are the sixteenth-century statue of Justice on the corner of the second floor and a bas-relief of a Lion of Saint Mark (1848), dating from the short-lived Republic of Saint Mark.