The Renaissance is an amazing era. Here there is a place for secret conspiracies and brutal murders - real paradise for any self-respecting assassin. You can silently jump on the roofs, instilling fear with your shadow on the cowardly guards, and administer justice to the snickering city officials.

However, the punishment of conspirators is not the only entertainment for a professional killer. Each of them dreams of becoming an explorer and collector of treasures, so that later with redoubled energy they will scatter all enemies on the way. Renaissance Italy is the ideal place to realize these aspirations.

• Cache for the killer
• Every killer should know...
• Cthulhu, there you are!

In Assassin's Creed 2, treasures lie literally at every turn. Already at the very beginning of the game, an inexperienced teenager from the Auditore family, under our leadership, will jump on the balconies and clear the trunks of the city nobility, heavy from florins.

But as we progress, our ward grows up, simple robberies are no longer a joy for him, and the soul of an assassin requires real adventures, deadly traps and truly royal awards. The thirst for research needs to be quenched, and if you are unable to find all the secrets of the game, then this article is especially for you. Let's start with the main thing.

Cache for the killer

The dream of every warrior is to become cooler than others. And when petty theft ceases to satisfy, there is a need to get deeper and find something of value. In our case, it will be the armor of Altair (the legendary assassin), locked behind six locks in a villa in Monteriggioni.

All locks can only be opened with the help of seals hidden in the tombs. We will now look for them.

Novella Mystery. We will get into the first cache only thanks to the plot (4th sequence, 4th memory), and unlike the others, we will not be able to go through this test again by selecting a memory from the "DNA" section.

Inside we are waiting for a bunch of guards, as well as the need to jump often and accurately. However, this tomb is plot and introductory - you should not expect real difficulties.

On a note: in each of the tombs you can find two secret places where additional chests with money are hidden.

The passage can be divided into two stages: first we jump on the beams and pull on different levers. If you want to find the first secret place, jump down, instead of grabbing the first bar, turn around, jump forward and go into a small room on the right. The second stage: massacre of the guards and interaction with the mechanisms that will help us get to the goal. The second secret area can be accessed immediately after getting acquainted with the first mechanism - just jump into a small depression nearby.

Toward the end, we will have to chase after the courier - if you wish, you can catch up with him and kill him before he warns the others, in order to avoid an unnecessary fight with the guards. Having overheard the conversation of the Templars, we can go into the crypt with peace of mind and pick up the first seal.

Everyday life of a city manager

Collecting figurines is a fascinating business
Noe, but financially unjustified.

With proper management of finances, the problem with a lack of money will disappear already in the middle of the game. This is largely due to the competent arrangement of the family villa of the Auditore family in Monteriggioni.

The key rule of a city philanthropist is that the more money is invested in the city now, the greater the income will be later. Therefore, first of all, strive to build and improve all the trading shops. The second most important are the renovations of the city - the restoration of the well, mines, barracks, etc.

As you build upgrades, you will also get the opportunity to climb into places that were previously inaccessible - some treasure chests can be reached when you restore the well or the barracks.

Another local attraction that is unique to this area is the collection of figurines that need to be inserted into pedestals in the villa. For each pair of statues placed, you will receive 2,000 florins.

It is a myth: There are rumors on the net that after collecting all twelve figurines, Uncle Mario will give Ezio some kind of treasure map, but this is not true. For collecting these gizmos, the player is rewarded only with money.

The secret of the cathedral. Santa Maria del Fiore is a continuous long labyrinth of beams, ledges and chandeliers. Unlike the previous temple, in the cathedral the crypt with the seal is located at the top, under the very dome of the building.

Before jumping on board
form, go to the left - there you will find one of the secret places.

First go up the door. Then you need to move not only towards the target marker, but also gradually upwards, the road here is not straight, but the only one, just carefully inspect the location for all sorts of ledges and crossbars.

After winding a little at the beginning and throwing down one staircase, you need to continue on your way to the opposite part of the cathedral, jumping on the chandeliers. When we drop down the second ladder, the camera will hint that you need to climb further only up. It is important not to get confused - from the stairs we jump to the parapet and go along it from left to right, jumping to platforms and chandeliers along the way (do not jump to the cross by the window - this is a dead end).

Now we have an easy way up - we will have to climb the walls a little and carefully jump along the beams. Difficulties should not arise, just move carefully - the fall is fatal. Before jumping onto the hanging platform, look to the left for a chest of money. You can turn left and down, use the jump back (LMB + spacebar) to grab the chandelier, and then jump into the secret area.

As you reach the red wall with ledges, go down a level - there is a second secret area, take the money and climb up, and then boldly jump forward - Ezio will hook on the platform. Take the seal and leave the cathedral through the window.

Mystery of Torre Grossa. Our next stop is San Germignano, or rather, the tallest tower in the city. Again, we have to travel from the bottom up, the fight against the guards and the insidious camera.

This is what they call a concept camera. Successfully jumping from such a position is another test!

The beginning is predictable - we move along the wall, and then we open the door. In the wine cellar, we kill the guards and run to the other side of the room. There are a lot of unnecessary beams and platforms here, you can find the right way, focusing on the tricks of the game camera. If you notice the limitation of the viewing radius, then you are on the right track.

Having risen one level up, kill the archer and climb onto the chandelier; if you now jump to the right into a small opening, you will fall into a secret area. We go to the library and deal with the crowd of armed "readers". On the wall and chandeliers we climb to the upper tiers, dodging the arrows of archers. Under the very ceiling of the library is the second secret area.

The further path is straightforward - we climb the tower, killing lone guards along the way. In the end, there may be some inconvenience with the camera, but this should not prevent us from taking the third seal.

Mystery of Ravaldino. Rocca di Ravaldino is a fortress in Romagna, here we will look for the next print in our collection. The place is wet, first we swim a little, and then we jump using the bounce back. The first difficulty is the mechanism blocking the gate. When we interact with him, we will have a few seconds to slip through the bars. I advise you to keep to the right side when moving, otherwise, due to the inconvenient camera, you can easily push Ezio into the wall, past the target passage.

Rocca di Ravaldino. To get to the barracks, jump on this shield and make another jump back.

Immediately after that, turn the corner to the left - the level above the first chest with money; use the jump back to get into the secret area. Then again there is a small swim where you need to dive (wait and hold the "Space" and press W). We deal with the guards, find a shield nailed to the wall and go upstairs.

We again have to race against the clock, but not difficult - by pulling the lever, we just run forward along the beams. Now, if you turn left and make some difficult jumps to the side, you can get to the second secret place, and then exit through the secret door. If you do not want to be distracted by the chests, then pull the second lever and take another run. In the barracks, crush the resistance and go into the crypt (the camera will kindly show the place where you need to jump).

Finally, we have one more time trial left. The road is not straight, and even the camera will provoke uncomfortable movements and jumps all the time. It is difficult to advise something here - you just need to get used to the situation and move carefully. After completing the test, we will immediately enter the crypt with the seal.

Secrets of the Templars

Templar Hideouts are additional exclusive locations available to owners of the Collector's Edition of the game (one of the Hideouts is available in the DVD-box). In fact, these are analogs of tombs, but here the labyrinths are even more intricate, the jumps are not easy, and at the end, instead of a seal, a treasury awaits us.

Here it is, the safe deposit box of the great Templars.

In total, three shelters can be found on the map; to visit them, it is not at all necessary to go through the whole game, they appear as new areas are opened. The first cache is in Palazzo Medici(Florence) - You need to save Lorenzo, who is being held by the Templars in his own house, which is full of secret passages. Two more shelters in Venice - one in the docks, in naval arsenal, the second - in the church Santa Maria dei Frari.

It is a myth: the hideouts also have two secret areas with hidden treasures, but in the Medici house, one of the secret places contains two chests at once. This gave rise to a rumor that the second cache did not exist.

Exclusive locations include family Crypt Auditore(it can be unlocked as content on Yuplay) - according to many eyewitnesses, this is the most difficult labyrinth in the game, full of jumps of varying degrees of difficulty interspersed with awkward camera angles. Unfortunately, its passage does not represent any plot or material value, only "sporting" interest.

Secret of San Marco. We will look for the fifth seal in Venice, but not immediately, but when we complete one of the sequences. The entrance to the tomb is located on the roof of the Doge's Palace, it will not be difficult to find it.

We get inside huge temple- you don’t need to run for a long time and look for the tomb, the entrance to it is located below, but it will open only when we complete the four tests. The task is to climb the upper tier of the palace to the lever in the allotted time and pull it. If the timer ends, the lever is hidden and you need to start over.

The palace is divided into four wings - each of them has one test. The difficulty is not in abstruse jumps, but in finding the way. Before activating the mechanisms, I would advise you to study the possible routes along which our hero will move.

We'll start with the northern challenge, where Ezio activated the stone slabs. When we step on the nearest ledge in the floor, the game camera will kindly show the place where we can climb, and then the lever we need to get to. This run is the easiest - gradually rise along the only possible way up, but when you are on the same level with the upper tier - jump in the opposite direction from the one where the lever is located. Then we move along a peculiar path of statues and crosses to the other side, run to the lever, climb even higher and jump onto it.

We go to the east wing. After activating the mechanism, we will see how the lever will appear at a high altitude next to the well-lit round window. We gradually move up, once on the upper platform, we find that the direct path is littered. We need to get over to the opposite side along the massive hanging crosses. We run closer to the lever, climb the yellow window to the very limit, press the "Interact" and "Go" keys - Ezio will jump back and hang on the lever.

The third test is the most vile and is located in the west - its path is not obvious and involves several difficult jumps. At the same time, we climb the structures in the center and fight with an uncomfortable camera, jump to the platform located under the lever. We move to the right and grab the ledge, move in the same direction and make a jump to the right, grabbing the ledge of the same shape. We go up, climb the rings almost to the ceiling and jump back to be on the beam. We jump on the lever.

The last run is very short, but again you need to jump carefully. First, we climb onto small platforms on the left, jump from them and grab onto a small ledge, make a difficult jump to the right and overcome the path of conveniently spaced beams, climb to the upper tier. Now all that remains is to climb the window in the shape of a cross to failure and make the traditional bounce back, hanging on the lever.

There are two secret places here, just like everywhere else. The first area is in the south wing; You can get to the chest using the jump pull-up technique (hold down the left mouse button and W, press Space, and then Shift). The second chest is in the west wing, on one of the lower platforms - you can open it by going down from the upper tiers. When all the tests are passed, the door to the crypt will open, and we will only have to pick up the seal.

Mystery Visitazione. To gain access to the last tomb, you first need to pretty much run around the Venetian story quests. The entrance to the cache is located near the shipyard, and this area is initially closed.

Visitatione. To get here, you need to run up the wall and jump back.

In this tomb, a difficult test awaits us, although the beginning does not portend trouble. We jump down, kill the thug guard and make a small forced march, chasing the frightened courier. He can be overtaken and killed at the very end of the route by jumping on the fugitive from above.

In the room in front of the large hall (where the showdown with the guards is coming), there is a secret area. You can get to the chest by making a series of tricky jumps (you will find the second secret place if you approach the mechanism with a lever near the temple and turn left). Having dealt with the guards, we go to the picturesque underwater temple.

The location of the tomb has been established, but the trouble is that the entrance to the temple is closed, and in order to reach the goal, you need to activate the mechanism (the beams will turn around and create a kind of “path” so that Ezio can reach all the target levers), take a dangerous walk, jumping on all kinds of ledges , and pull all four levers in turn, thereby opening the door to the tomb with the seal.

The second misfortune is that you can get to some places only by using a special key combination, which you will have to learn here. Time is limited, you can not hesitate, and any careless movement will lead to the fact that the assassin will flop into the water and the race will have to start over.

Before starting the test, I would advise you to set the control to “keyboard + mouse (two buttons)” in the settings - it will be easier. In total, on the route you need to make four jumps of increased complexity - push off from the wall and jump in the right direction. The first of them, the easiest, at the beginning of the race: quickly run up the wall (W + "Space" + "left mouse button"), release all the keys, and then simultaneously press the key combination D + "Space" + LMB, where D - this is the direction of the jump. When you need to jump to the left, press A instead.

The most difficult jump in the Visitation is to push off from the statue and jump right here.

It is important: all three keys must be pressed clearly and simultaneously - if you click only on D + "Space", then Ezio can jump back (most likely into the water) and the test will have to start over. In theory, the jump is possible without clicking the mouse, but it is more reliable.

The most difficult jump will be number 2: it is next to the first, but in this case you need to push off not from the wall, but from a stone statue of an unpleasant rounded shape. You need to carefully run into it (it's better not to rush too much, because of the camera and sudden movement, you can easily fall into the water) and jump to the left (this means that instead of D we press A).

The rest of the jumps are simple: the third one is waiting for us after a short run along the beams and ledges - you need to push off to the right, and the last one will be near another statue - we run to the wall and push off to the left. After that, it remains only to pull the last lever, and the gates of the temple will open. We jump into the water, go inside and pick up the last seal.

When all the seals are collected, our assassin with a sense of accomplishment can return to the Auditore's villa and place the seals near each of the statues. New equipment for Ezio not only looks great, but also adds health!

Call of Cthulhu

The monster has found adventure on its tentacles, but they will not let you fight it.

The game pleases with an abundance of secrets, but none can compare with what will be discussed now. During the passage of one of the tombs of the assassins, you will not only visit the underwater temple, but also get the opportunity to see one of its mysterious inhabitants. Remember the test in the Visitation with heavy jumps? We'll go right there.

After the fight with the guards, open the gate and go to the temple. Activate the mechanism, but do not rush to run to the obstacle course, but immediately go to the water and lean down a little. Now just wait and pay no attention to the running time.

In a few seconds, a game video will begin, where we will see how a huge monster swims past our assassin under the surface of the water, very reminiscent of Cthulhu in shape and appearance. But that is not all! When the video ends, go to the mechanism and pull the lever again, and then return to the place where you just stood, or walk along the water.

If everything is done correctly, then you will again see a cutscene where a huge tentacle emerges from the water and tries to hurt Ezio. Such monsters live in the Venetian waters...

On a note: the secret does not work on a clean boxed version of the game from Akella; in order to play the easter egg, you must first activate additional content in the game.

Every killer should know...

All riddles of "Truth" are not tied to certain signs and are opened in strict order. For example, the last, twentieth riddle will always be about hieroglyphs, no matter what sign you open.

Blacksmiths in the game have healing properties. At the same time as repairing your armor, your entire health bar will be restored.

Knowing tricky tricks is never superfluous. For example, this point cannot be climbed without pulling up in a jump.

When playing as Altair, in order to jump onto the beam, you need to climb onto the balcony railing, stand directly under it, press the left mouse button and "Space" - the assassin will grab the beam, and then the way up will not be a problem.

To see more spectacular scenes where Ezio kills enemies, use a counterstrike.

You cannot replay story missions, but the most spectacular episodes can be replayed by visiting "special memories" (they are displayed on the map after you are accepted into the order of assassins).

The guards blocking the passage can be bribed. You just need to throw money, and the main one will let you through.

Knocked out weapons can be picked up in the armory in the villa in Monteriggioni. If, after you have lost your weapon in battle, you pick up an enemy one, it will not disappear after a while, and Ezio will hang it on his belt.

Poisoned Blade is great in situations where you need to not give yourself away or kill someone without being noticed. We just poison one of the guards, he attracts attention, and in the meantime we can quietly pass through a protected place or get to the desired goal.

During the carnival in Venice, you can steal money from passers-by with impunity, the alarm level will not increase, just like at the beginning of the game.

This city is unique temple built in Byzantine style. St. Mark's Basilica, or San Marco Cathedral, is loved by the locals and is considered one of the main tourist pilgrimage sites in Italy.

The stolen saint

Somewhere in the eight hundred years of our era, brave merchants from Venice stole the relics of the saint in Alexandria, which they brought to their native city. Thus, they tried to provide their fellow tribesmen with protection from all hardships and upheavals. The fact is that, according to legend, an angel once appeared to the saint during his wanderings, announcing that he would find peace only in Venice. So the brave traders just fulfilled God's will.

Initially, the "fathers of the city" favorably reacted to this religious feat. In order to provide the saint with a worthy final resting place, the Basilica of San Marco was built. But the first temple was not lucky - it burned down. True, the remains of the saint survived.

Fearing the revenge of the robbed Alexandrians, and possibly even heavenly punishment, the local clergy decided on a bold hoax. A new cathedral was built on the site of the basilica destroyed by fire, and then it was announced to the people that the relics of St. Mark had materialized here by themselves. The city rejoiced!

San Marco as a place of worship and cultural monument

The Cathedral of San Marco quickly became famous. People came here in hours of joy and sorrow, rulers were crowned here and heroes were buried. However, the temple itself had not only religious, but also political significance: its grandeur and beauty were supposed to show the whole world that the Venetian Republic deserves respect.

The façade of the basilica is decorated with Constantinopolitan marble and unique carvings, the arches are covered with intricate mosaics, and inside the temple there is an interesting collection of cultural monuments, including works by great Renaissance artists.

But the most incredible luxury is the local altar, the Pala d'Oro. Perhaps this is the main treasure of Venice. This masterpiece was created half a century - a complex of eighty miniature icons, decorated with precious stones and precious metals, it is no coincidence that they are called the "golden altar". Today, to go to the Cathedral of San Marco means to touch the collection of treasures of the beautiful freedom-loving Venice. And at the same time - to receive the blessing of the saint, whose remains rest under the vaults of the basilica.

2016-10-12 13:49:00

Everyone loves secrets...

This fall, we will discover another mystery of the fantasy world of one of the most prominent authors of our time - Dan Brown. But not on the pages of a cult novel, but on the screens of cinemas.

After the release of the sensational "The Da Vinci Code", "Angels and Demons" and other books, the American writer continued the exciting story about Robert Langdon, a professor of semiotics from Harvard University. So, in May 2013, the world saw the new bestseller "Inferno".

Eagerly devouring pages of the novel one after another before the film premiere, we simply could not help but turn our attention to the most unusual “piece of jewelry art” in it - the golden Cathedral of San Marco in Venice. Even the reader who has nothing to do with jewelry, for a few moments in these chapters changes his detective interest for the interest of a tourist, a traveler, a connoisseur of beauty. And that's why...

To unravel the secret message of Dante Alighieri, encrypted in the text of the Divine Comedy, together with Robert Langdon, we have to go inside the Cathedral of San Marco. Then it becomes obvious that it is simply impossible to overestimate the luxury of the Golden Church.

"Because on interior decoration Several million old gold records were sent to the cathedral, it was believed that many dust particles floating in the local air were actually particles of gold. This golden dust penetrating the air, combined with the bright sunlight streaming through the large western window, gave the atmosphere a special fullness that helped good Christians to acquire spiritual wealth and, if they breathed deeply, worldly wealth: light, gilded from the inside.

The designers and craftsmen of SOKOLOV find in these passages something very close to their inspiration and the process of creating jewelry. The accuracy of the description of the smallest details of the design is also impressive.

“The altar is overshadowed by an elegant ciborium and has one of the most valuable altarpieces in the world – the famous Pala d’Oro. This vast "golden fabric" of gilded silver is a fabric only in the sense that the work is "woven" from the works of the masters of former times, mainly from Byzantine enamels, and is enclosed in a single Gothic frame. Decorated with some 1300 pearls, 400 garnets, 300 sapphires, emeralds, amethysts and rubies, the Pala d'Oro is considered one of the wonders of Venice."

I wonder if the director managed to convey the greatness of the precious cathedral in such detail? We'll see soon.

Here is our riddle...

Near three years painstaking work, more than 2,500 details, a unique development of artists and master jewelers SOKOLOV. What is it about? The answer is hidden.

As you can see, the theme of jewelry architecture is also close to us. That is why we are looking forward to the release of the film. Do not miss the long-awaited premiere from October 13th.

But even if, in pursuit of a detective denouement, the audience will not be shown all the charms of the Basilica of San Marco, then we will have a unique opportunity to personally go to Venice in the footsteps of Inferno. And that's great!

Sergey 21.07.2019

Inna Koval 21.07.2019

Olga Ilyashenko 20.07.2019

Olga 19.07.2019

Olga 03.07.2019

“The one who, standing on the square of St. Mark, does not feel that his heart is beating faster, he can afford to be buried, because he is dead, hopelessly dead ... The one who has St. The brand does not have a heartbeat, it does not have one at all,” wrote the famous Austrian writer Franz Grillparzer.

Cathedral of Saint Mark(Italian: Basilica di San Marco) - Venice Cathedral (until 1807, the court chapel at the Doge's Palace ), which is a rare exampleByzantine architecture in Western Europe . Located onSt. Mark's Square, Near Doge's Palace. Cathedral is not only outstanding monument about m Italian Medieval Art, but takes a place of honor in the treasury of the world architectural masterpiece about in.

As the legend says, the evangelist - Mark was returning from a journey and a storm overtook him. He decided to take refuge in the Venetian lagoon. In a dream, an angel appeared to him and told him that in this place he would find peace. The words of the angel are immortalized on the banner of the Venetian Republic: "Pax tibi Marce evangelista meus" - "Peace be with you, Mark, my evangelist."After his death, Mark was buried in Alexandria.

The original view of the Basilica.

While in Alexandria, the merchants Buono and Rustico learned that the Muslims were planning to destroy a number of Christian churches to make room for the construction of mosques. The Venetians decided to save the relics of the saint from imminent defilement, especially since, according to Holy Tradition, it was with the Apostle Mark that the preaching of Christianity in the cities of the Venetian lagoon was connected.

With many precautions and tricks, the relics were taken out, and after their arrival in Venice,apostle markreceived the status of the patron of the city, giving him his symbol - a winged lion.

The construction of the first version of the building was begun by Doge Giustiniano Partecipazio in 829 and completed in 832 by his brother Giovanni. In 976, as a result of a fire, the cathedral suffered serious damage, but it was later restored.

In 1071 the church was basically completed, and in 1094 it was solemnly consecrated. The design of the cathedral lasted for several centuries, and each generation of the Venetians brought something of their own into its appearance, saturating it with fabulous treasures.

During this time, there was a change in artistic tastes, which could not but be reflected in the cathedral, where there are elements of all styles. Although San Marco is woven from European styles, on the whole, it has the spirit of wondrous luxury of the East. He is especially good at night, when the beauty of fairy tales blows from him.

Nowhere in the world - neither in the East nor in the West - is there anything like it. This is how the masters of Venice showed their talent already in the first major creation.

The Church of San Marco went down in history as the Cathedral of St. Mark, although officially during the entire Middle Ages it was not a cathedral (this role belonged to the Church of San Pietro di Castello until 1807).
Gradually, San Marco turned into a magnificent monument of architecture and art. The cathedral was not only a repository of sacred relics, but also the center of public life in Venice. Doge initiations took place here, naval commanders and condottieri received signs of their powers. Saint Mark was the religious and civil symbol of Venice.

In addition to history, the architectural component is also very interesting - the fact is that originally built in the form of a classical Greek basilica with a Romanesque facade, over the years the cathedral has become an arena for mixing different styles.

Suffice it to say that oriental marble, Romanesque and Greek bas-reliefs, Italian and Byzantine sculptures, as well as Gothic capitals were combined in its appearance. It is very important that, thanks to the talent of the master builders, all these very different elements together made up a very integral and organic architectural ensemble.

View of Piazza San Marco from above.

The shape of the cathedral is typically Byzantine and is an equal-ended Greek cross. The device of the altar part, which is separated from the central nave by a Gothic iconostasis, is curious.

The altar barrier is made of dark red Verona marble, it is crowned with a large cross, on the sides of which there are 14 statues - 12 apostles, as well as the Virgin Mary and St. Mark. In the altar itself, there is a ciborium (canopy over the throne), under which the main altar of the temple with the relics of St. Mark is located. It is carved from a single piece. green oriental marble and supported by four columns of limestone alabaster, each of which has 9 rows of reliefs depicting the story of the Virgin Mary and Jesus.

Venice adopted a lot from the wise Byzantium. The main construction of the building is Byzantine. The building is crowned with five domes in the form of lanterns with gilded crosses of the 13th century. The facade has huge niches and semi-open arches. The cathedral is complemented by marble cladding and luxurious portals, decorated with two tiers of columns, arches with sculptures and mosaics above the entrance.

The cathedral received its festive decoration in the XII-XIV centuries. At the beginning of the XIV century, the building was crowned with a magnificent whimsical cornice in the Gothic style. Details of the decor of San Marco belong to different times, and their origin is different. For their artistic merit, they deserve to be told about them in detail.

Some of the reliefs were brought from Byzantium. Some of them represent various crafts, hunting or fishing scenes. The bronze doors of the entrances are very interesting: two doors at the edges are beautiful works by Bertucci, made in 1300, as evidenced by the signature of the master and the date right on the doors. The middle door was remade from the Byzantine one. The decor is rich with mosaic decorations. The first ones were made in the 13th century.

The mosaic compositions of the main portal reproduce the scene of the Last Judgment, others are dedicated to the story of the abduction and arrival in Venice of the body of St. Mark. The Latin inscriptions above them say that Saint Mark is brought in so that he "always guards the Venetians from enemies." Only the first of the mosaics have been preserved in their original form, and from them one can easily imagine what the cathedral looked like in the 13th century.

Other mosaics are located above the entrances to the cathedral: “The abduction of the body of St. Mark from Alexandria”, “The arrival of the body of St. Mark in Venice”, “Venetian gentlemen meet the body of St. Mark”. The authors of these works are Pietro della Vecchia and Sebastiano Ricci. This is only a small part of the entire sculptural and mosaic decoration of the cathedral. Here, all the domes and vaults are filled with gold mosaics, the total area of ​​​​which is more than 4000 m

Above the main entrance to the cathedral is the famous quadriga - four bronze horses, which were already in the 4th century BC. e. cast by masters from the Greek island of Chios. First, the quadriga was brought to Rome, where it adorned the triumphal arch. In the 4th century A.D. e. she was sent to Constantinople, where she was hoisted onto the gates of the hippodrome and remained there for several centuries.
In 1204 Doge Enrico Dandolo took Constantinople at the head of the crusaders. As a trophy, he took out horses taken from the arch of the Byzantine emperor. The horses first stood on a pedestal near the Doge's Palace, but in 1797, on the orders of Napoleon, whose troops occupied Venice, the horses were sent to Paris and installed on Carousel Square opposite the Louvre, where the famous quadriga stayed for eighteen years.

Quadriga.Original.
After the defeat of Napoleon in 1815, the horses were returned to Venice and hoisted over the main entrance to St. Mark's Cathedral. During the two world wars, the quadriga was lowered into the shelter. Now the priceless original is in the museum, and its bronze copy is on the dome of St. Mark's Cathedral.

Through the main entrance of the cathedral you will enter the atrium, which was originally intended for nephrites (uninitiated). The walls are lined with marble and mosaics, they depict events from Old Testament. The mosaic "The Creation of the World and Man" is especially impressive. Individual scenes are arranged in concentric circles. The whole story of Adam and Eve is described in great detail, and each day of creation is indicated by a white angel.

The Russian artist Surikov, seeing this mosaic, was so delighted with it that he wrote: “In the old painting, and even in the newest, I have not seen a legend conveyed with such psychological truth.”

Numerous mosaics cover the domes and arches of the cathedral. Huge compositions are created by unknown masters bit by bit, from pieces of glass and stone.

The art of mosaic was introduced to the Venetians by Byzantine masters who came to Venice. Masters from Byzantium passed on the secrets of mosaic technique: the degree of light transmission and reflectivity of glass, stone and metal, the combination of gold with paints. In the 9th-14th centuries, the Venetian school of mosaic painting took shape.

Gradually, the mosaics settled on the walls of the cathedral in a strict order, starting with the image of Christ and scenes from the life of the 12 apostles and ending with the images of all the saints and patrons of Venice.

The mosaic in the center of the dome (XIII century) called "The Ascension of Christ" has preserved Byzantine features. On the supporting arches of the dome are scenes from the New Testament: the childhood of Christ, the miracles performed by him, the Crucifixion and Resurrection. The Venetian in these compositions manifested itself in the desire for colorfulness and festivity. The beauty of the mosaics and marble of the walls is combined with the ornamentation of the floor, which is especially striking in the brilliance of colors after the flood, when the water rises to the level of the atrium floor.

The southern facade is decorated with numerous decorative elements taken from Constantinople. Of greatest interest is sculpture of the four tetrarchs, made of porphyry . Tetrarchs are installed on the corner of the treasury, next to it are the Akritan pilasters.

The statue was made in the first half 4th century and was part Constantinople Philadelpheion built next to the Column of Constantine.

• the most common version, which gave the composition its name, is the co-emperors of the tetrarchy period: Diocletian, Maximian, Galerius and Constantius Chlorus;

The entire interior of the cathedral makes an indelible impression of grandeur and grandeur: huge domes, arches going up, mosaics sparkling with gilding, rich stone floor patterns.

Altar

In the middle of the cathedral is an altar barrier made of polychrome marble, decorated with columns and sculptures. A unique treasure is kept in the altar part of the cathedral - a golden altar.

This is one of the richest altars that have survived to this day. The history of its creation goes back 400 years. The altarpiece was commissioned by Doge Orseolo in 1105, remade for Falière, then in 1209 decorated with enamels and gold.

In the upper part of the altar are inserted six enamel plates with episodes of the Holy History depicted on them - these enamels were most likely taken out during the Crusade from the monastery of the Almighty in Constantinople. In the lower part of the enamel, Christ is depicted surrounded by evangelists, angels, apostles and prophets, and there are also sculptures of Empress Irene and Doge Ordelaorfo Falier.

Enamels themselves are the greatest value, and decorated with gold, diamonds, rubies and pearls, they are not only a work of art, but also a valuable treasure.

On the left side of the cathedral is the altar of the Madonna with the icon of the "Victory Madonna", which is considered the patroness of Venice. This Byzantine icon belonged to the monastery of St. John the Evangelist in Constantinople, where it was brought along with other valuable items after the Crusade. In the right wing of the baptistery is the baptistery.

One of the famous images kept here is the figure of Salome in red robes, with the head of John the Baptist on a platter. This work inspired A. Blok to write the following lines:

In the shadow of the palace gallery
Slightly illuminated by the moon
Hiding, Salome passes
With my bloody head.
Everything sleeps - palaces, canals, people;
Only a ghost's sliding step
Just a head on a black platter
Looks longingly into the surrounding darkness.

Archangel Michael. Byzantine cloisonne enamel.

The rarest riches belonging to Venice and the cathedral have long been kept in the treasury of San Marco. True, not all treasures have come down to us completely. But what remains is of interest. Visitors will be shown a marble relic in the form of an armchair, made in the 4th century, Byzantine bowls, Egyptian items made of rock crystal, a one-of-a-kind thing - the “grotto of Our Lady”, made in Venice in the 13th century from various objects.

The cathedral is famous for its mosaics, including "Descent from the Cross", "The Descent of Jesus Christ into Hell", "The Resurrection of Christ" and many others. The total area of ​​mosaic paintings is about 4000 sq. meters.

The cathedral has five domes - one central and four above the branches of the cross. In turn, each of the domes also forms the center of the cross-domed group.

IN crypt(a place serving for the burial of the relics of saints) of the cathedral, some of the elements that historically belong to the first basilica have been preserved. At its center is a chapel decorated with marble openwork slab Byzantine work, it was under it that the relics of St. Mark were kept until 1835, which were then transferred to the main altar.

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All the beauty and uniqueness cathedral can be described by the phrase of the famous English art critic John Ruskin (John Ruskin), who in 1851 said something like this:

“You can stand at St. Mark's all day, carefully watching the reactions of people passing by, and during all this time you will not see a single one who does not raise his eyes to him. A soldier and a city dweller, an executioner and a poet, rich and poor - none of them can pass by and remain indifferent!

Today, after so many years, nothing has changed. People from all over the world do not stop admiring the beauty of the structure, admiring the cathedral.

The main secret of the Villa Auditore in Monteriggioni is the Sanctuary, where light and durable armor of Altair. Mario after some time will decide to show them to Ezio. To obtain the equipment and armor of Altair, stored behind bars, you need to find six seals-keys of the legendary assassins - Kulan-Gala, Darius, Wei Yu, Amunet, Iltani and Leonius - buried in Italy. Uncle, no matter how much he tried, could not find them, but he still does not lose hope, although he has long abandoned active searches. The locations of the tombs of the assassins with seals are marked on the map with special black icons in the form of the letter A. The icons appear immediately or after visiting the viewpoints, starting from the fourth sequence.

Before receiving each seal, you have to pass a test, proving the seriousness of your intentions. Trials consist of overcoming obstacles against the clock or finding a path. An unpleasant surprise during the hunt for seals will be the behavior of the camera, which will choose bad angles and viewing angles at key moments, leading to offensive breakdowns, snags and marking time. Each location, in addition to the main reward, hides one or two secret areas where treasure chests are hidden. It is not necessary to look for them, in this case only a reward will be missed - several hundred gold coins (re-passing the tombs of the assassins in AC2 is available through the "Cashes" in the "DNA" section in the main menu of the game). The collected seals are placed in slots on the Assassin statues in the Sanctuary in the basement of Villa Monteriggioni. All seals can be collected in the ninth sequence, before the carnival in Venice.

Legendary Assassins:

• Mongol Kulan-Gal- shot Genghis Khan's horse with a bow.
• Persian Darius- killed Xerxes with a hidden blade.
• Chinese Wei Yu- killed the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang with a spear.
• Egyptian Amunet- killed Cleopatra with a snake.
• Babylonian Iltani- Poisoned Alexander the Great.
• Roman Leonius- stabbed Caligula with a dagger.

The location of the tombs of the assassins in Assassin's Creed 2:

• Seal of Darius(plot task "The Mystery of the Novella", sequence 4.4):
  • Florence: Catacombs under the Cathedral of Santa Maria Novella in the quarter of the same name in the eastern part of the city, entrance through a guarded courtyard from the east side of the building.
• Seal of Iltani(task "The Secret of the Cathedral"):
  • Florence: Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore in the San Giovanni quarter in the central part of the city, entrance at the north wall.
• Seal of Wei Yu(task "The Secret of Torre Grossa"):
  • Tuscany / San Gimignano: At the base of the Torre Grossa on the south side of the central square with the church of Santa Maria Assunta.
• Seal of Kulan-Gala(task "The Secret of Ravaldino"):
  • Forli: Behind the northern wall of the Rocca di Ravaldino fortress in the southwestern part of the city.
• Seal of Amunet(task "The Secret of San Marco"):
  • Venice [