Just like Native Americans isolated on a reservation, Venetians appear to be a population headed towards extinction, says Italy’s La Repubblica.

The remaining ‘ethnic’ Venetians will be documented and studied by the researchers of an American university, the Worcester Polytechnic Institute of the Massachusetts, who plan to collect the DNA of La Serenissima’s last native inhabitants. In the interest of historic genuineness, the DNA testing is applicable only to Venetian males who can trace their Venetian lineage back to their grandparents.

The search for the origins of the Venetians, launched by the National Geographic Society, and conducted by the researchers of the Worcester Polytechnic Institute, will be one of the highlights of  “Venice’s Funeral,” a symbolic gesture organized by the movement Venessia in an effort “to sensitize the public opinion on the problem of the city’s depopulation.”

Today, Venice is inhabited by a mere 59,992 citizens. Last year alone, the resident population fell by 444. In fact, following the symbolic funeral held by Venessia, a petition will be distributed in an effort to seek out new, potential Venetians who can help repopulate the lagoon city. Otherwise, reports National Geographic, ‘the decline seems inexorable.’

… Gherardo Ortalli, a professor of medieval history, thinks Venice will end up as simply a theme park for the rich, who will jet in to spend a day or two in their palazzo, then leave…  “Everything is for sale,” he sighs. “Even Venice.”

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