Lazzaretto

Lazzaretto refers to a quarantine station established to isolate arrivals at ports in order to prevent the spread of contagious diseases, especially during plague outbreaks. The term is Italian in origin, derived from lazzeretto, and has entered many languages as a generic label for facilities used to isolate people and goods during health crises. Lazzaretti were built in many Mediterranean and European ports, reflecting public health practices that sought to prevent inland transmission of disease.

In practice, ships arriving from affected regions were detained for a designated quarantine period, commonly around forty days, during which passengers and crew underwent medical inspection, symptoms were monitored, and sanitation measures were applied. The most famous examples are in the Venetian Lagoon, where the Lazzaretto Vecchio (Old Lazaret) and the Lazzaretto Nuovo (New Lazaret) functioned as isolation islands for centuries.

Over time, as public health strategies evolved, many lazaretti were repurposed, relocated, or demolished. Some sites have been preserved as historical monuments or converted to nature reserves, museums, or cultural venues, preserving knowledge of past quarantine practices. The concept of quarantine and its associated facilities influenced the development of modern public health law and infrastructure, and the term lazaretto remains a historical reference to the isolation of arrivals during epidemics.