The religious and civil feast of Christ the Redeemer is celebrated this year on 14 July. It is a profoundly significant date for the city of Venice, though tradition remembers it as 'a very famous night', quite overlooking the rites in the Palladian church, the procession over the bridge of boats, the thousands of burning candles, the displays of popular devotion, and so on. In point of fact, the nocturnal feast follows on from the religious ceremonies, when the wonderful fireworks display light up sky and water with brilliant flowering shapes in all the colours and shades of the rainbow - and the Venetians feast aboard boats of every kind. So, not to forget the faith but to celebrate humanity in flesh and bone.