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At the Venetian festivals the processions, not on land but on water,
were marvelous in their fantastic splendor. The sailing of the
Bucentaur to meet the Princesses of Ferrara in the year 1491 seems to
have been something belonging to fairyland. Countless vessels with
garlands and hangings, filled with the richly dressed youth of the
city, moved in front; genii with attributes symbolizing the various
gods, floated on machines hung in the air; below stood others grouped
as tritons and nymphs; the air was filled with music, sweet odors, and
the fluttering of embroidered banners. The Bucentaur was followed by
such a crowd of boats of every sort that for a mile all round _(octo
stadia) _the water could not be seen. With regard to the rest of the
festivities, besides the pantomime mentioned above, we may notice as
something new a boat-race of fifty powerful girls. In the sixteenth
century the nobility were divided into corporations with a view to
these festivals, whose most noteworthy feature was some extraordinary
machine placed on a ship. So, for instance, in the year 1541, at the
festival of the 'Sempiterni,' a round 'universe' floated along the
Grand Canal, and a splendid ball was given inside it. The Carnival,
too, in this city was famous for its dances, processions, and
exhibitions of every kind.
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