equalled in
the days of ancient Rome, and it is doubtful if the latter have ever
been surpassed in sumptuousness and splendor. The palaces of Venice
form an architectural group of great interest, in many respects quite
distinct from the contemporary buildings on the mainland. They were
carefully planned to satisfy the demands for comfort and convenience
as well as display. Most of them have the same arrangement of plan,
and were commonly built of two lofty and two low stories. On the
ground floor, or water level, is a hall running back from the gate to
a bit of garden at the other side of the palace, and on either side
of this hall, which was hung with the family trophies of the chase and
war, are the porter's lodge and gondoliers' rooms. On the first and
second stories are the family apartments, opening on either side from
great halls, of the same extent as that below, but with loftier roofs,
of heavy rafters gilded or painted. The fourth floor is of the same
arrangement, but has a lower roof, and was devoted to the better class
of servants. Of the two stories used by the family, the third is the
loftier and airier, and was occupied in summer; the second was
the winter apartment. On either hand the rooms open in suites.
The courtyard at the rear usually had a well in its centre with an
ornamental curb; and access to the upper floors of the house was
gained by an exterior staircase in the court, which was often
elaborately enriched with carved ornament.

The materials used in construction are mostly red and white marbles,
used with a fine color sense, and the desire for abundance of color
was frequently further gratified by painting the exterior walls with
elaborate pictorial decorations.

[Illustration: II. The Palazzo Contarini Fasan, Venice.]

The earliest palaces are Byzantine, but with the growth of the Gothic
movement these were gradually superseded, although the Gothic
influence worked more slowly here than on the mainland. The richest
and most elaborate work was built at this period. Finally the
Renaissance took the place of Gothic; and the later palaces, built in
this style, show strongly the debased condition into which the art of
Venice fell in the Dark Ages.

We have selected for the illustrations of this number of the BROCHURE
SERIES some of the most widely known examples of the fifteenth-century
Gothic palaces, built at the time when Venice was at the zenith of
prosperity as the principal commercial p