It’s illegal to even visit the island and there are no tours that go to that location. In a sense, those whispers were somewhat vindicated a short while ago when archaeologists working on the nearby quarantine islands of Lazaretto Nuovo and Lazaretto Vecchio unearthed a mass burial site with the remains of thousands of plague victims. The Lazzaretto Vecchio is an island of the Venetian Lagoon, northern Italy, located near the Lido of Venice. The sad but important history of the island is a vital part of the story that came to define one of the most tragic episodes in Venice’s history. Although Lazaretto Vecchio was closed for several years due to the economic situation at the time, members of the Archeoclub of Venice have worked to restore the island to safety. See Poveglia Island, considered one of the most haunted islands in the world, and walk the desolate grounds of a plague quarantine building. You can’t live in Venice, or as close to Venice as we do, without hearing the tall tales of the island Italians claim is the most haunted in the world. Rumor has it, the hospital was home to a number of crude lobotomies, performed by a doctor who'd been driven mad by the ghosts. Later a second quarantine island was created at Lazaretto Nuovo. Poveglia was a normal island, but an attack by a Genoan fleet in 1379 caused residents to relocate to nearby Giudecca. Fall is my favorite season. That all changed in 1793 when two ships arrived carrying the plague. Lazzaretto Vecchio is not far from Poveglia, and it was the hospital for the sick. Mass graves of plague victims were also found on Poveglia’s neighboring island, Lazzaretto Vecchio, which was considered the first plague colony. Do you know this Swiss a, Bordeaux spruced up for the holidays! In 2004, workers digging the foundation for a museum on Lazzaretto Vecchio, a small island in Italy’s Venetian Lagoon, made a gruesome discovery. Luxe Adventure Traveler | About | Work With Us | Privacy Policy, Poveglia: The Haunted Island in the Venetian Lagoon. Caligula's Gardens, Long Hidden Beneath Italian Apartment Building, to Go on View, Newly Discovered Bat Species Has Halloween Colors, Rare Doctor's Note Offers Glimpse Into Napoleon's Agonized Final Years, Dire Wolves Weren't Actually Wolves, DNA Analysis Reveals, The History Behind Amazon's 'One Night in Miami', You Can Now Explore the CIA's 'Entire' Collection of UFO Documents Online, Turkish Archaeologists Discover Grave of Sultan Who Defeated Crusaders, 'Stunning' Victorian Bathhouse Unearthed Beneath Manchester Parking Lot, Nine Famous People and What They’re Buried With. Yet another version says someone or some entity pushed him off the tower. Therefore, the only solution was to separate people and Venice introduced a quarantine. Keep up-to-date on: © 2021 Smithsonian Magazine. At the end of the 1700s, after three centuries of operation, both lazzaretti were in terrible conditions, and scarcely fit for purpose. During the plague, Lazaretto Vecchio was used as a quarantine center for victims and recently mass graves of plague victims were uncovered. No, but seriously, this place sounds scary. This island’s very dark history does point to the fact that it is probably haunted but this activity is so interwoven with legend it is difficult to separate the two. Recently, mass graves have been found on the nearby islands of Lazaretto Nuovo and Lazzaretto Vecchio containing the remains of thousands of plague victims. Explore the grounds as you learn about the functions of this building during the plague and as a military base. The island first appears in the historical records in 421, and in 1776 the island was used to separate the unhealthy from the healthy. Advertising Notice After a pair of ships carrying plague victims arrived in 1793, the island was sealed off and turned into a quarantine zone for people with infectious diseases, a role it served for over a century. The Venice Film Festival is the oldest film celebration in the world, founded in 1932. A further four properties listed for auction will be sold off rather than leased, including a monumental monastery in the crumbling old town of Taranto in Puglia, in the heel of Italy, and a 15th century castle in Gradisca d’Isonzo, near the border with Slovenia, that was built to defend against the Turks. ****************************, Happy Holidays! But the Italian government hopes that somewhere in the world, someone is willing to overlook Hollywood conventions and lease Poveglia Island, an uninhabited island off the coast of Venice that is known for the large numbers of reported hauntings over the years. Haunted Islands of the Venetian Lagoon We recently took advantage of another of the Army's ODR trips and got to visit a couple more of the islands in Venice. The island is first mentioned in chronicles of 421 AD. Give a Gift. A quarantine island was established in the lagoon at Lazaretto Vecchio in 1408. 17th Annual Photo Contest Finalists Announced. In the 9th century the Doge of Venice [the provincial governor] was killed, and an estimated two hundred of … Your email address will not be published. This year has been a difficult on, It’s #worldracletteday! Aside from Poveglia, two other islands were used for quarantine purposes and dumping sites - Lazzaretto Vecchio and Lazzaretto Nuovo. Smithsonian Institution. Privacy Statement Lazzaretto Vecchio will reportedly host a museum dedicated to plague victims in the near future. Lazzaretto Vecchio is home to the oldest of Venice's plague quarantine stations (above, a view from the museum island) Black Death era: 16th-century graffiti … It was later used, as were other islands, as a military post. Lazzaretto Nuovo, the quarantine island, is in the northern lagoon. It covers an area 2.53 hectares (6.3 acres) large. Photo about Il lazzaretto vecchio in Venice. It didn't help when the place was converted into a hospital for the mentally ill in 1922. Poveglia, a island that can be compared to the size of the Sheep’s Meadow in Central Park or half of Navy Pier in Chicago, is said to be so evil that you’d be hard pressed to find an Italian willing to set foot on the island. Home to the dead bodies in the Bubonic Plague, the Poveglia Island is located between Venice and Lido in the Venetian Lagoo, northern Italy. Lazzaretto Vecchio, a small island in the lagoon, was home to the first of these institutions, but Poveglia is the best known. But the Italian government has higher hopes for Poveglia and other historic properties around the country. Get the best of Smithsonian magazine by email. The trouble started back in the late 19th century when Poveglia served as a checkpoint for ships going to Venice. The small, infamous italian island once hosted thousands of refugee black plague victims, serving as a quarantine island for those who were even suspected of harboring the bacteria, and it seems the island remains one of the most haunted places in Italy. It goes without saying that many of these people died on the island during this time, leading to the widespread belief that Poveglia is haunted. Feb 26, 2013 - In 2007 work crews on Lazaretto Vecchio, a small island in Italy’s Venetian Lagoon, located a couple of miles from Venice’s famed Piazza San Marco, were digging the foundation for a new museum when they came across one such grave pit, filled with the remains of more than 1,500 plague victims. Continue Back to the Haunted Island. Mass graves of plague victims were also found on Poveglia’s neighboring island, Lazzaretto Vecchio, which was considered the first plague colony. Image of small, italy, abandoned - 55203223 Your first stop will be Lazzaretto Vecchio, originally the site for a hospital from the 15th century until the 17th century to nurse patients during the plague epidemics. (30 minutes on the island) The tiny 18-acre Italian island of Poveglia is located less than half a mile from Venice and is considered to be one of the most haunted locations in the world. Merry Christmas Eve! Lazzaretto Vecchio, a small island in the lagoon, was home to the first lazzaretto. ***********. Mary Beth Griggs is a freelance science journalist based in New York City. ... At the time of the Black Plague conditions in the islands hospital called Lazzaretto Vecchio … ... 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