The "Vera"
The word “vera”, is a typical Venetian term that defines the wellhead, the stone covering the well itself. At the beginning recycled materials were employed, brought from the city ruins of Altino. This is why the oldest wells have their top stone consisting of capitals and column sections. Many of these “vera” show effigies of the family that had the well built. The largest vera is located in Campo San Polo and measures 320 cm in diameter. In 1800 census counted about six thousand wells, but after 1884, with the construction of a proper water supply system, many wells were demolished, especially those made in bricks. Today Venice has about 600 wells, none of which is in use.
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