On the surface, Venice is beautiful – but, thanks to the fact that the city is filled with signs and symbols, there’s way more to it than meets the eye! From gondolas to flags, almost everything in Venice has a hidden story to tell. Here are three of our favorite Venetian symbols that you can find scattered across the city.

It’s a truism to say that the Venetian gondola is a symbol of Venice. But there’s way more to it, because the gondola itself is loaded with symbols and meanings, too! First of all, there’s the size of the gondola. Every one is exactly 35′ 6″ long and 4′ 6″ wide, but each has one side 10 inches longer than the other.