Marriage of the Sea ceremony of the sea continues to this day. It is performed by the mayor of Venice aboard a smaller ceremonial barge called the "Bissona Serenissima". Marriage of the Sea ceremony The Marriage of the Sea (), sometimes referred to as the Marriage of the Adriatic, was an ancient ceremony which used to symbolize the maritime dominion of Venice. The ceremony, established in about 1000 AD to commemorate the Doge Pietro II Orseolo's conquest of Dalmatia, was originally one of supplication and placation, Ascension Day being chosen as that on which the doge set out on his expedition. The form it took
Gulf of Mexico Island. The Gulf contains a hypoxic dead zone that runs by east-west along the Texas-Louisiana coastline. In July 2008, researchers reported that between 1985 and 2008, the area roughly doubled in size and now stretches from near Galveston, Texas, to near Venice, Louisiana. It is now about , nearly the record. Poor agricultural practices in the northern portion of the Gulf of Mexico have led to a tremendous increase of nitrogen and phosphorus in neighboring marine ecosystems, which has resulted in algae blooms and a lack of available oxygen. Occurrences of masculinization and estrogen suppression were observed as a result.