The Faro, or lighthouse, you see was built in 1912 but ever since the middle-ages there had always been a wooden tower on Murano, even if more inland. Today, of course, the lighthouse is powered by electricity, but in the past a fire would burn at the top by night, and bouncing off the lagoon water, it created a bright shimmering of reflections, which could be seen miles away, allowing ships to navigate with greater safety. By day, the faro, just like other important Venetian towers, famously St Mark’s Campanile, were used as lookout posts, to see when merchant ships were coming in or, somewhat more urgently, if enemy ships approached.