The head of an elderly woman at Corte del Teatro in San Luca

Behind the famous Teatro Goldoni in Venice, near the Grand Canal, there is a tiny Corte which is very hard to find... And hides several surprises!

On the wall of a house, for example, you can see the marble head of an elderly woman which is connected to a rather singular story: an old woman who lived nearby, terribly tight-fisted, used to hide all her money in the lining of an old coat that she kept it in the attic.

One winter day, the woman's son, who was unaware of the precious hiding place, touched by the conditions of a poor indigent, gave him the coat.

A week later the old woman went to the attic to hide more money and discovered what his son had done... To convince him to recover the coat, she promised his son to leave all the money hidden in the coat in his inheritance.

To find the poor man, the son even disguised himself as a beggar and finally spotted him on the steps of the Rialto Bridge with the by then worn-out coat; using the biting coat as an excuse, he gave the poor man his thick and warm coat in exchange for the other.

With the money found, his son was able to open a pharmacy - which is still called ‘La Vecchia’ - and put a statue of his mother in the back of the shop.

The head in Corte del Teatro is all that remains of the sculpture!

If legends and curiosities about Venice are your passion, our city will give you many pleasant surprises! Rely on one of our brilliant local guides to discover other fascinating places like the one described in our anecdote!