One unlucky cat was the only victim when the ancient St. Mark’s bell tower collapsed in Venice

After hundreds of years, the structure came crashing down in 1902

The Campanile of St. Mark’s Basillica was reduced to a pile of rubble when it collapsed on July 14, 1902. (Mansell/Life Picture Collection/Getty Images)

The city of Venice has always operated on faith. Between the flooding and the sinking, it’s a tribute to early engineering that the city has survived as long as it has. But even Italian stonemasons can’t account for every act of God.

A photochrome postcard of Saint Mark’s Square from the late 1800s. (Detroit Publishing Co. via Library of Congress)

The Campanile di San Marco had already seen more than its share of wear and tear when it collapsed in 1902. Centuries of lightning strikes had charred the iconic bell tower at least eight times. It was erected on Roman foundations in the 9th century, and an earthquake in 1511 further tested the integrity of its structure. But the St. Mark was a survivor, and at 99 meters tall it was a fixture of the Venetian psyche—and skyline—a monolith of Italian engineering prowess. When, on the morning of July 14, 1902, a large crack was noticed in the northeast corner of the Loggia Sansovino, a small baroque structure abutting the base of the tower, authorities immediately cancelled a concert planned for later in the day. “A little before the collapse a noise of falling stones within the bell tower warned the shopkeepers, workmen and tourists of the impending disaster and all fled for their lives, crying ‘The Campanile is falling!’” reported the Sausalito News on July 19.

Miraculously, no one was killed in the collapse, which turned the once-stately tower into a doleful mound of debris in the middle of Saint Mark’s Square. Nearby residents panicked when they mistook the rumbling and thick cloud of red dust as a volcanic eruption, and had to be calmed by police. Countless antiquities were lost and a portion of the nearby Biblioteca Marciana was damaged, but the adjacent Basilica—an architectural icon—emerged unscathed. As for loss of life: The only casualty was the caretaker’s cat.

A chromolithographic Illustrated postcard depicts the moment of collapse. (Fototeca Gilardi/Getty Images)

Though the exact cause of the tower’s collapse is not known, news reports at the time cite local complaints that persistent dredging of the Grand Canal had caused the ground to slip. Seasonal flooding in the plaza and the ad hoc nature of renovations over the centuries also may have contributed as well. Following the event, a vociferous debate emerged in Venice over whether or how to rebuild. Eventually, officials decided to resurrect the campanile as an exact replica of itself, though with a new iron framework and structural support. The ancient wooden foundation beams were also replaced with concrete.

This early example of a doctored photograph purports to show the collapse of the campanile with citizens fleeing beneath, in 1902. The fake photo was widely distributed at the time. (Fototeca Gilardi/Getty Images)

Remains of the campanile and the partially destroyed library. Hand-colored lantern slide from 1902. (Imagno/Getty Images)

Saint Mark’s Square was littered with rubble after the collapse. Reconstruction of the tower took place between 1903 and 1912. (Alinari via Getty Images)

Inner court of Ducal Palace showing fragments of the campanile saved from the ruins, August 10, 1902. (Library of Congress)

Ruins of the campanile from the portico of the Ducal palace, August 12, 1902. (Library of Congress)

Pedestrians climb on the rubble in the weeks following the campanile’s topple. (Wikimedia)

The new Campanile di San Marco under reconstruction in 1911. (Library of Congress)

At the base of the campanile, two Italian boys stop for a cup of coffee during seasonal flooding at Saint Mark’s Square. (Bettmann Archive/Getty Images)