Poveglia Island story. We are in the Venice lagoon, near a famed island that is now completely abandoned. A place with a unique and occasionally gruesome past.
The Poveglia Island Story
Let us take a step back and retrace the Poveglia Island story. In Roman times, this strip of land was known as Popilia, most likely due to the presence of towering poplar trees (popilia, from the Latin populus “poplar”) or the nearby Popilia-Annia route. When the Lombards arrived in the sixth century and destroyed the mainland settlements, individuals fleeing the invaders’ rage sought refuge on Poveglia island. In fact, the island developed into a hamlet complete with a castle.
Poveglia Island story continues in the Middle Ages
In 864, 200 defenders loyal to killed doge Pietro Tradonico came on the island. Poveglia prospered during the Middle Ages. The majority of the residents were successful in their fishing and salt-making enterprises. Around the year 1000, there were approximately 800 houses and the church of San Vitale.
However, the situation shifted dramatically during the War of Chioggia between the Republic of Genoa and the Republic of Venice, which lasted from 1378 to 1381. Poveglia went through a period of difficulty. For safety considerations, the people abandoned the island and traveled to Venice. Genoa seized Poveglia, which was completely destroyed by the end of the fight. Very few people remained. According to some sources, the famed painter Giorgione was buried on the island of Poveglia after his death in 1510.
Failed attempts
The Republic of Venice tried multiple times to resuscitate the island, but with little success. Following the seventeenth century, the island became a storage facility for boats and on-board equipment. However, over time, the desire to reserve Poveglia for health reasons developed.
The lazaretto
In fact, beginning in the late eighteenth century, the island of Poveglia became a lazaretto. This was because the islands of Lazzaretto Vecchio and Lazzaretto Nuovo had ran out of room to house all the ill. Throughout the nineteenth century and until the Second World War, Poveglia served as a quarantine facility for plague and cholera victims. A marble plaque on the western coast carries a Latin inscription that can be translated as follows: “Do not dig up (disturb) the dead who were infected in life. They rest here, 1793.”
During the nineteenth century, Poveglia became Italy’s largest naval lazaret. Between 1831 and 1832, 702 ships were quarantined in Poveglia. The deceased’s bodies had been buried in large mass graves. Even now, human bones frequently turn up in the ground, particularly in the island’s northern region. Here starts the most horrific and violent chapter of the Poveglia island story. In fact, it became a place to execute individuals sentenced to death. Furthermore, starting in the 1920s, a new structure for one of Italy’s largest mental institutions appeared.
The mental institution in Poveglia
Most likely, Poveglia was never an official mental hospital. In reality, the new structure was initially designed to house elderly convalescents. The real nature of this structure is still being debated. According to documentation obtained in Venice’s historical archives, the structure served as a nursing institution from 1922 to 1946.
However, some evidence reveals that it was a true psychiatric hospital. For example, the “Psychiatry Department” sign is still hanging among the wreckage. As we will see, the mental institution, or what was assumed to be one, was most likely a place of horrific torture. It ended operations in 1968. Since then, the island of Poveglia has been abandoned, and entry is prohibited.
Poveglia Island: the story of the sadistic doctor
One of the many legends surrounding the Poveglia island story involves a peculiar doctor. During the mental department’s operation, he is accused of abusing patients and conducting horrible experiments.
Many people link this enigmatic character with the Swiss doctor Sarles, who performed the first lobotomy in 1890. However, history has it that the doctor eventually went insane. Sarles, haunted by the ghosts of patients who died during his scientific investigations, hurled himself from the San Vitale church’s bell tower. However, he did not die immediately. A nurse who witnessed the suicide testified that, when the doctor’s body was lying on the ground, a fog suddenly rose and engulfed him until he suffocated.
The Ghost Island
However, it appears that even nursing home inmates were disturbed by the ghosts of plague victims who perished in large numbers on the island of Poveglia. Today, Poveglia is regarded a ghost island and one of the world’s scariest places.
For decades, this location has had a terrible reputation and a strange past. According to some witnesses, roughly half of Poveglia’s territory is covered in human skeletons due to its reputation as a ‘cursed’ island. As a result, the island of Poveglia is one of the most popular ghost hunting destinations. But how can I go to the island of Poveglia?
Poveglia Island Tours
The island of Poveglia is uninhabited and abandoned. It is inaccessible, with no ferry stops on the island. As a result, the only option to visit is to charter a private boat or schedule for private guided trips. In any case, to avoid fines and infractions, it is best to request authorization from the Municipality of Venice at least ten months in advance, stating the reason for the visit.
The ruins of the island
There are 18 structures on the island of Poveglia that have been completely abandoned. The island is made up of three adjacent islets. The “Ottagono di Poveglia” is an octagonal-shaped islet with fortifications that served as a defensive outpost to the south. In the center, there are abandoned buildings and a vast green space. The last islet, to the north, is connected to the preceding one by a bridge. This section was used for agriculture. The extant structures are the historic hospital pavilions, constructed between 1900 and 1945.
The center building in front of the Octagon, for example, served as the hospital’s main structure. The main entrance, which leads to a hall and the former Hospital Management, remains hidden under the ruins and wild plants. The upper floors are accessible by a stairway in the back.
Devotion to Saint Vitale
Despite the desolation of Poveglia, the San Vitale faith survives. Religious art and Carrara marble statues have been added to the church over the years. Among the statues, we find one of Christ, which arrived on the island of Poveglia in unknown circumstances. The Church of Santa Maria in Malamocco presently houses all the original statues.
Only the bell tower of the medieval church of San Vitale remains. Over the years, it transformed into a lighthouse and watchtower. Even though it has been stopped, the 1745 clock in the tower remains.
Here you can find tourist guides for various sights in Venice:
10 most beautiful museums in Venice
Venice Tour: the Jewish Ghetto and Cannaregio
Poveglia island story gallery
Island of Poveglia video
Poveglia map
Venezia weather
Meteo Venezia
Tourist information offices near Poveglia Island
The offices providing information, ticketing (public transportation, museums, churches, theaters, plays and concerts), tours, maps and guides, and retailing are:
- Venice, Piazza San Marco 71/f
- Venice, Piazzale Roma (shop next to the Venezia Unica Agency) / telephone +39 041 2722283
- Venice, Santa Lucia FS Station, Cannaregio 54 C-D opposite Actv A-B landing stage
- Marco Polo International Airport (arrivals area)
- Mestre, via Lazzari 32 (near Piazzale Cialdini)
- Dolo, Via Matteotti 15H
For any tourist questions about locations and events in the city, please send an email to info@veneziaunica.it or phone the call center at 041.041.
