Every year hundreds of trees are cut down. They’re trimmed, sanded and hand-painted, then pile-driven into the dense mud of the Venetian lagoon. It’s a practice that has been going on for centuries for very good reasons, but few people give them a second glance. And even fewer know why they line the historic canals. So what are Venice’s multicolored pali da casada poles there for and what history do they hide?

Visiting Venice is undoubtedly a sensory overload for most of us. From ornate waterside palazzi to delicate handmade lace, from jet-black gondolas to tasty cicchetti plates, from glistening glasswork to the gentle waves slapping against the canal side, there is so much to take in. So its not surprising that details get lost in the abundance. But focus in on elements and you start to see new features of buildings or canal views appearing out of the miasma.