A bronze statue of a winged lion that has long graced the center of Piazza San Marco in Venice is from a faraway land, according to a new study. It was made in China as a tomb guardian over 1,000 years ago and may have been imported to Italy by Marco Polo's father via the Silk Road in the 13th century, the researchers found.
"Venice is a city full of mysteries, but one has been solved: the 'Lion' of St. Mark is Chinese, and he walked the Silk Road," study co-author Massimo Vidale, an archaeologist at the University of Padua, said in a statement.
