Bartoli's Hideout
The third level of Tomb Raider II, Bartoli's Hideout is in fact that family palazzo of the Bartoli family. A large and impressive building, it is however sadly a remnant of past glories. It occupies a position next to a silted up canal in the Italian city of Venice.
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Summary
Lara enters the palazzo from its main door. The hall is decorated with a marble floor and highly decorative plasterwork. To one side is a long room with a glass ceiling. Lara must climb up to the balconies and traverse the red canopies that line the neighbouring building.
The next part of the palazzo is the upper floor of the main building. There are several reception rooms decorated in bright wallpaper, although this too is ripped and faded. Pushing a block in a fireplace leads to a secret room inside the walls, where a gas main has leaked allowing fires to spread and block Lara's way. She can enter the ballroom through a hatch in the wall.
The ballroom is filled with piles of collapsed masonry and dust-sheeted items of furniture. The main focus of this area is gaining access to the library which is housed in a large annex.
From the library, Lara can enter two areas that are next to canals. Once leads into a garden with a small gazebo, the other can be used to access a large wooden struture, wherein she will find the Detonator Key. This is used to blow up part of the facade of the palazzo, at which point Lara can climb up the debris and enter the Opera House.
Links
Notes
The Bartoli palazzo does in some ways resemble a typical Venetian palazzo. It has its own mooring posts and platforms at various points around the building. It also has a walled garden and most of the rooms are confined to a central block.
The library annex is unusual as space was at a premium in Venice - perhaps signifying just how much money the family had.
Enemies
Gallery
Bartoli's front hall.
The upper hall of the palazzo.
The upper reception rooms of the palazzo.
The ballroom of the palazzo.
The library annex.
Looking over another canal towards the start of the level.
The courtyard garden.
The final area of the level, looking towards the Opera House.
