CA' CORNARO PISCOPIA, a Veneto-Byzantine palace of the "fondaco" style, was erected c. 1200 by an unidentified patron.  The palace passed to Andrea Zane, previously of S. Stin parish, in 1316 and was acquired by Cav. Federico Cornaro (SA-35) and his brothers, previously of S. Aponal parish, in 1364.  Soon the palace was the site of several important state visits, first by Albert Hapsburg, future Duke of Austria, in September 1361, and then by Peter I Lusignan, King of Cyprus, in December 1366.

The latter visit was one of the pivotal events in the Cornaro family's rise to wealth and power, which was based heavily on its role in the commercial and political life of the Kingdom of Cyprus. The lion rampant of the Lusignan family is among the decorations on the frieze of the palace.

The two lower floors comprise the original Gothic structure, with the two upper floors added in the 1500s.

Suggested appearance before
the 16th century additions

The palace passed, 1740, into the Loredan family, 1740, when it was inherited by Lucrezia Cornaro-Piscopia (D-103), who had married Giovanni Battista Loredan in 1703. The structure is one of the oldest palaces still standing in Venice, and famed 19th century commentator John Ruskin (The Stones on Venice) thought it remained "the most beautiful palace in the whole extent of the Grand Canal." The palace was sold out of the Loredan family in 1816 and acquired by the city government at auction in 1886.  It serves today (with the adjacent Ca' Farsetti) as the municipio [city hall] of Venice.