The Vestibule is located on the main floor of the building before the Reading Room of the Library of St. Mark; a painting by Titian depicting Wisdom towers at the centre of the ceiling. This is what the Antechamber of the Library of St. Mark looks like today, the room that for two centuries housed the Public Statuary, opened in 1596, of the Venetian Republic. Architect Vincenzo Scamozzi's set-up included a very great number of ancient sculptures from Domenico Grimani's legacy and Giovanni Grimani's donation; the exhibit was enriched over time with other bequests from various Venetian families.
The removal of the antiquities, after the fall of the Venetian Republic, left the walls barren for a long time. In 1997, an exhibition made it possible to physically replace many works that formerly occupied the site on its two shorter sides. A good number of marble works were left behind and are still here today, as partial evidence of the extraordinary richness of the public collection.