The Chilling History of the Haunted Venetian Island of Poveglia
The gruesome origins of quarantine
Everything about the island of Poveglia sounds like a horror movie, from its mass death pits to the human experiments. The scale of the horror is so unbelievable that even the very earth itself is said to be fifty percent human remains. It’s no wonder it was voted one of the most haunted places in the world!
Poveglia is a tiny eighteen-acre island a stone’s throw away from the famous Saint Mark’s Basilica on mainland Venice. But it’s nothing like its picturesque and charming neighbour; Poveglia’s history is dark, disturbing, and downright scary. It’s been abandoned for decades, though it depends if you count the 160,000 tortured souls rumoured to reside there.
Many lived their last days on the island through the plague, the Napoleonic battles, and the island’s mental institution. Poveglia’s history is literally insane.
Plagued past
Poveglia’s spooky story starts with the deadly disease, the bubonic plague, which claimed one in three people’s lives over the centuries. The Black Death was devastating Europe, and the Venetians found themselves in a desperate situation. Venice’s unique location made it a perfect trading centre; it brought the city an abundance of wealth…
