Venice's famed canals were left almost empty this weekend, as low tides caused the lagoon city to sit eerily still. Traditional gondolas and boats could be seen almost beached in the canals on Friday as water levels reached a peak of -48 centimetres.

Venice, beloved around the world for its canals, historic architecture and art, has always lived in a fragile balance between low and high tides, which usually create variations of around 50cm in sea levels. Flooding is a constant enemy of the art city built on a collection of small islands within a saltwater lagoon off the north-eastern coast of Italy, with every new incursion damaging its medieval and Renaissance palaces.