Othello it and reworked hints in creating the character of Othello. While supplying the source of the plot, the book offered nothing of the sense of place of Venice or Cyprus. For knowledge of this, Shakespeare may have used Gasparo Contarini's "The Commonwealth and Government of Venice", in Lewes Lewkenor's 1599 translation. The earliest mention of the play is found in a 1604 Revels Office account, which records that on "Hallamas Day, being the first of Nouembar ... the Kings Maiesties plaiers" performed "A Play in the Banketinghouse at Whit Hall Called The Moor of Venis." The work is attributed to
Lion of Venice extended, which had previously been tucked between its hind legs. The book beneath its paws was again recast; the French replacement having been lost, stolen, or abandoned. Ultimately, the image of the "Lion" appeared on the flag of the Venetian Republic and it is also well known in the form of the prizes introduced in 1949 at the Venice International Film Festival. Lion of Venice The Lion of Venice is an ancient bronze winged lion sculpture in the Piazza San Marco of Venice, Italy, which came to symbolize the city — as well as one of its patron saints, St