Entries from Churches in Venice tagged with 'Renaissance'
San Trovaso
There are a couple of quirky things about this church that every guidebook mentions. First is the name - there’s no saint in existence called San Trovaso. The real name of this church is Ss. Gervasio e Protasio, brother...
San Rocco
I’ve visited this church many times but until last November, every visit was more-or-less a blur because I visited the Scuola next door first and was in a complete Tintoretto overload haze. So last year, I went to the...
Ss. Cosma e Damiano
A Renaissance church and convent dedicated to two doctor saints, this church was founded in 1481 by Benedictine nuns from Murano and Mazzorbo, who thought that their convents were too lax and decided to start their own with stricter...
The Bellini altarpiece in San Zaccaria
The photos above show Giovanni Bellini’s Virgin and Child Enthroned with Saints, in the church of San Zaccaria where there are almost always a group of people gathered in front of the painting in rapt silence. So many recognizable...
San Zaccaria
On many of the "must-see in Venice" lists, San Zaccaria is a church with lots of layers and art that spans the centuries and styles – it’s a fascinating place but even someone not into churches should pop into...
Sant' Iseppo
Also known as San Giuseppe di Castello, this church was built in 1512 by the Venetian Senate in response to popular demand for a church dedicated to Joseph, father of Jesus. The church complex also included a small convent...
San Giobbe
One of the first Renaissance buildings in Venice, this pretty pink church is dedicated to San Giobbe (St. Job) who technically was never a Christian at all since he’s an Old Testament character. But Job’s famous trials (and the fact...
Santa Maria della Visitazione
Hang on, this might be a little confusing. There are two churches in Venice with this name, and this is the one on the Zattere, that great waterfront promenade in Dorsoduro, not the one also known as La Pieta...
Santissimo Redentore
This weekend (July 19 and 20) is the Festa del Redentore (Feast of the Redeemer) in Venice, a celebration of thanksgiving for the end of a 16th century Black Plague epidemic. It’s one of Venice’s most popular holidays complete...
San Martino
A charmingly cluttered parish church on a canal in Castello not far from the Arsenale, this Renaissance church isn’t listed in most guidebooks probably because it doesn’t have any famous masterpieces, but it’s got a nice eclectic collection of...
Leaning Tower of San Pietro di Castello
This is one of the most beautiful campanili in Venice. The leaning tower in Pisa is more famous but Venice has more than one that's a bit wonky. In all honesty, nothing in Venice looks particularly straight but there...
San Giovanni Elemosinario
A hidden Rialto market church with a Titian on the high altar. San Giovanni Elemosinario (St. John the Almsgiver or Almoner) is a Byzantine saint more commonly honored by the Orthodox rather than the Catholic church. A wealthy 7th...
Santa Maria Maggiore
A church that’s now part of Venice’s prison, this one’s got an interesting history with not one but two miracle-working Madonna legends. In the 1400’s, this was a remote and poor fishing neighborhood on the western shore of Venice...
Santa Maria Mater Domini
This lovely Early Renaissance church is another one of my favorites. It’s small and elegant and feels like a place that’s been much loved by many generations of grandmothers, plus it has one of my very favorite paintings in...
Titian's Assunta in the Frari
Titian’s Assumption of the Virgin (the Assunta) is arguably the greatest Venetian painting in the world.* We’re lucky that we can see it in the church for which Titian painted it almost 500 years ago. Born in the Dolomites, Tiziano...
San Giorgio Maggiore
One of Venice’s most beautiful and familiar vistas is the island of San Giorgio Maggiore and the great temple of a church that Palladio built there. Many artists have painted it, millions of tourists have photographed it, John Ruskin...
Santa Maria dei Miracoli
This is the most famous of a number of churches in Venice that have or had legendary miracle-working paintings, icons, or sculptures of the Madonna. Santa Maria dei Miracoli is named for and was built to house its painting with...
San Giorgio dei Greci
The Greek Orthodox cathedral with a leaning tower, this church is dedicated to San Giorgio (St. George), the charismatic dragon-fighting, princess-saving saint. It’s kinda cool that there are four churches in Venice dedicated to St. George – two Catholic, one...
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