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A Friday Visit with Jim Korkis: The Italy Pavilion



By Dave Shute

Welcome back to Fridays with Jim Korkis! Jim, the dean of Disney historians and author of Jim’s Gems in The easy Guide, writes about Walt Disney World history every Friday on yourfirstvisit.net.

THE ITALY PAVILION IN EPCOT’S WORLD SHOWCASE

By Jim Korkis

The Imagineers decided to theme the Italian pavilion in Epcot’s World Showcase to the city of Venice, because they felt Venice would be the most readily recognizable location to guests as representing Italy since that city had so many famous architectural icons.

The Isola del Lago on the lagoon side of the pavilion (Isle of the Lake) was to give the opportunity of seeing the pavilion from one of the over 120 islands connected by canals, rather than streets, that make up the city of Venice. It includes several pedestrian bridges, a very common sight in Venice and gives it an aura of authenticity.

The Isola would also offer the opportunity to have gondolas moored at the distinctive poles. Gondolas are the main method of transportation in Venice. Different types of watercraft were originally meant to distinguish the various pavilions for guests viewing the area from across the World Showcase Lagoon or from the Friendship boats.

(c) Disney

Standing 83 feet tall, the campanile, or bell tower, resembles the one in Piazza di San Marco or St. Mark’s Square in Venice. Just like the original on which it is based, it is located adjacent to the Doge’s Palace.

However, to balance the skyline by giving it greater symmetry and not to give the pavilion more acreage than the other pavilions, it is placed on the opposite side. It was built to one-fifth the scale of the original.

On top of the campanile is the Archangel Gabriel. This exact replica of the original was painstakingly covered in gold leaf. That detail was done for practical reasons since it would not tarnish and prevent frequent refurbishment. An unadorned replica of the statue was placed in the garden to the right for guests to get a better view of it.

The pink and white Doge’s Palace is a reproduction of the residence for the Dukes who ruled Venice for seven centuries. The palace facade is lavishly adorned with ornamentation and statuary. At the very top is the statue of Justice that stands guard over the building. The building is a blend of Gothic and Renaissance styles.

The Doge’s Palace is schematically correct in its delicate and profuse ornamentation, columns, colonnades and distinctive design pattern. Working from photographs and on-site visits, the Imagineers made a remarkably convincing facsimile right to down to the elaborate door handles.

Unlike the original, this version was made from fiberglass and plaster although it was made to look like the original marble and stone. The marble on the façade is actually brick which has been treated with fiberglass. Underneath the columns and arches are steel girders and beams providing the actual support for the building.

The statues seem to be made of solid stone but are actually hollow. They are lightweight and could easily blow away. To prevent this from ever happening, they are held in place with rods which run from their base through their hollow centers.

The interior does not duplicate the interior of the original. Imagineers adapted architectural elements from the periods during which the palace was built and so is an accurate representation of the styles from the 9th through the 16th century.

At the far end and around the corner of Disney’s Doge’s Palace is a carving of a grotesque face. Citizens could anonymously, and often hidden in the darkness of night, drop slips of paper into the open mouths of these types of faces and report their neighbors for crimes or voice complaints about government actions. The face located at the Doge’s Palace was specifically intended to be used to report financial crimes including tax fraud.

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Thanks, Jim! And here’s a little more on Italy, from The easy Guide to Your Walt Disney World Visit:

Come back next Friday for more from Jim Korkis! In the meantime, check out his books, including his latest, Secret Stories of Disneyland, his Secret Stories of Walt Disney World: Things You Never You Never Knew, which reprints much material first written for this site, and his contributions to The easy Guide to Your Walt Disney World Visit, all published by Theme Park Press.
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