Palazzo Contarini Fasan

Venice · Italy · Palace

Venetians call it Desdemona's house. Behind the legend stands a dark-skinned commander whose jealousy drove his wife back to her family.

This small Gothic palace with its pierced, lace-like balconies was built around 1475 and is one of the narrowest houses on the Grand Canal. Venetians call it the Casa di Desdemona, because tradition holds that Shakespeare's Desdemona lived here. The legend runs along two lines. One points to Nicola Contarini, a commander in the wars against the Turks who by the story was so dark-skinned that he was nicknamed the Moor; his wife Palma Querini is said to have fled back to her family to escape his jealousy. The other leads to Cristoforo Moro, admiral of the Venetian fleet, who in 1515 married a daughter of Donato da Lezze known as il demonio bianco, the white demon — a name that sits close to Desdemona.

FAQ

Where is Palazzo Contarini Fasan located?

Palazzo Contarini Fasan is in Venedig, Italy.

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Accounts are drawn from local folklore and visitor reports.

Image: Didier Descouens · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons