In the 1890s, Venice was a city suspended between past and present. Though politically part of unified Italy, it remained steeped in history—its canals, palaces, and churches largely unchanged. Artists and travelers flocked to capture its romantic decay, while local life continued around gondolas, boatyards, and quiet squares.
These fascinating photos of Italian photographer Ferdinando Ongania (1842–1911) were published in the 1890s in the two volume Calli e Canali in Venezia (Streets and Canals in Venice) that contained one hundred photogravures of the canals, streets and inhabitants of Venice.
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| Gondola, Venice, 1891 |
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| Equestrian Statue of Bartolomeo Colleoni, Venice, 1891 |
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| Arsenale, Venice, 1891 |
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| Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute, Venice, 1891 |
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| Bridge of Sighs, Venice, 1891 |
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