Burano is an

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

in the Venetian Lagoon, northern Italy, near

Torcello Torcello ( la, Torcellum; vec, Torceło) is a sparsely populated island at the northern end of the Venetian Lagoon, in north-eastern Italy. It was first settled in 452 CE and has been referred to as the parent island from which Venice was p ...

at the northern end of the lagoon, known for its lace work and brightly coloured homes. The primary economy is tourism.

Geography

Burano is from Venice, a 45-minute trip from St. Mark's Square by

vaporetto The vaporetto is a Venetian public waterbus. There are 19 scheduled lines that serve locales within Venice, and travel between Venice and nearby islands, such as Murano, Burano, and Lido. The name, ''vaporetto'', could be translated as "litt ...

, a Venetian water bus. The island is linked to

Mazzorbo Mazzorbo is one of various islands in the northern part of the Lagoon of Venice. Like the other islands in this part of the lagoon, it was the site one of the earliest settlements in the lagoon which predated the development of Venice. However, t ...

by a bridge. The current population of Burano is about 2,400. Originally, there were five islands and a fourth canal that was filled to become ''via e piazza Baldassare Galuppi'', joining the former islands of ''San Martino Destra'' and ''San Martino Sinistra''. Burano has historically been subdivided into five

sestieri A (plural: ) is a subdivision of certain Italian towns and cities. The word is from (‘sixth’), so it is thus used only for towns divided into six districts. The best-known example is the ''sestieri'' of Venice, but Ascoli Piceno, Genoa, Mi ...

, much like Venice. They correspond to the five original islands. The sixth sestiere is neighboring

: Burano has a high population density, calculated at more than 13,000 per square kilometer, or more than twenty times the density of neighboring Mazzorbo. It is almost entirely covered by residential buildings, with few small green areas.

History

The island was probably settled by the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

, and in the 6th century was occupied by people from Altino, who named it for one of the gates of their former city. Two stories are attributed to how the city obtained its name. One is that it was initially founded by the Buriana family, and another is that the first settlers of Burano came from the small island of Buranello, about to the south. Although the island soon became a thriving settlement, it was administered from Torcello and had none of the privileges of that island or of Murano. It rose in importance only in the 16th century, when women on the island began making

lace Lace is a delicate fabric made of yarn or thread in an open weblike pattern, made by machine or by hand. Generally, lace is divided into two main categories, needlelace and bobbin lace, although there are other types of lace, such as knitted o ...

with needles, being introduced to such a trade via Venetian-ruled

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

. When

Leonardo da Vinci Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (15 April 14522 May 1519) was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, Drawing, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially res ...

visited in 1481, he visited the small town of

Pano Lefkara Pano Lefkara ( el, Πάνω Λεύκαρα) is a village on the island of Cyprus famous for its lace, known as lefkaritika in (Greek: λευκαρίτικα) and silver handicrafts. The village takes its name from the white of its silica and lime ...

and purchased a cloth for the main altar of the

Duomo di Milano Milan Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Milano ; lmo, Domm de Milan ), or Metropolitan Cathedral-Basilica of the Nativity of Saint Mary ( it, Basilica cattedrale metropolitana di Santa Maria Nascente, links=no), is the cathedral church of Milan, Lombard ...

. The lace was soon exported across Europe, but trade began to decline in the 18th century and the industry did not revive until 1872, when a school of lacemaking was opened. Lacemaking on the island boomed again, but few now make lace in the traditional manner as it is extremely time-consuming and therefore expensive.

Main sights

Burano is also known for its small, brightly painted houses, which are popular with artists. The colours of the houses follow a specific system, originating from the golden age of its development. If someone wishes to paint their home, one must send a request to the government, who will respond by making notice of the certain colours permitted for that lot. Other attractions include the church of '' San Martino'', with a leaning campanile and a painting by Giambattista Tiepolo (''Crucifixion'', 1727), the ''Oratorio di Santa Barbara'' and the ''Museum and School of Lacemaking''.

Transport

The island forms part of the

Actv Actv S.p.A. (Azienda del Consorzio Trasporti Veneziano) is a public company responsible for public transportation in Venice and Chioggia municipalities and for interurban bus services in province of Venice. ACTV is not responsible for Venice Pe ...

waterbus network. The following lines connect to Burano:
9 (Burano-

)
12 ( Fondamente Nove- Murano-Burano- Treporti-

Punta Sabbioni Punta Sabbioni (Pronounced pun-ta sab-bee-ohnee) is a port for daily boats to Venice. Punta Sabbioni is situated in the West Coast of Cavallino-Treporti, Italy. The port's diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line s ...

)
14 ( S.Zaccaria- Lido SME-

-Burano)
A night service also operates.

Gallery

File:Rio Giudecca in Burano.jpg, Rio della Giudecca File:Burano, fondamenta di terranova 02.jpg, Rio di Terranova File:Rio Pontinello in Burano.jpg, Rio del Pontinello File:0 Burano, Fondamenta di Cao Moleca, Rio San Mauro et Fondamenta Cavanella (1).jpg, Nearly all buildings are painted in rich colors File:Lonely house in a residential area of Burano.jpg, A lonely house in a residential area File:Play and work.jpg, Contrasting colours of adjacent houses File:Via vigna House entrance in Burano, detail.jpg, Entrance of a house in Fondamenta degli Assassini File:"Luce che viene e luce che va".jpg, View on a canal at dawn

References

External links

* {{authority control Islands of the Venetian Lagoon Frazioni of the Metropolitan City of Venice Geography of Venice 20th-century establishments in Venice Former municipalities of Veneto