Since the 11th century Venetian merchants frequented the Gulf of Alexandretta and, more generally, the lands of the Eastern Mediterranean; it is therefore likely that during one of their trips they seized the Lion statue.
Some feathers arranged on the right side testify to the new and particular role assigned to the lion by the ideology of its new holders, who transformed into the symbol of Mark the Evangelist.
It is assumed that during the 12th century, the Venetians seized the statue, which at that time had already been reduced to a simple lion, but it has not yet been established whether its transformation into the symbol of St. Mark happened in Venice or in the East. It is not even known if when the columns were erected, in 1173, the Lion had been already placed in the Piazzetta.