Although born in Venice, Michele Giovanni Marieschi at first worked abroad and only seems to have spent the last years of his short life painting views of his native city. The successful career of Canaletto had already revealed the demand for pictorial mementos of this kind from rich foreign visitors on the Grand Tour. Compared with Canaletto's prolific output, Marieschi's was small and almost always left unsigned. The inclusion here of his initials – seen on the end of the barrel, at the lower right – makes this painting a rarity amongst his work. The Rialto Bridge, with shops and stalls spanning the arch, was already a famous landmark in Venice, and provided the only foot passage across the Grand Canal. In this painting it stands out against the luminous sky and serves as a backdrop to the busy traffic of boats going about their business on the main waterway through the city.