Introduction

This site grew out of frustration at there not being a site like it, or indeed a comprehensive and well-written book. It began as a joint effort by me and Anne Atwell. She was responsible for the compilation of the original list but no longer contributes. The churches are divided up by sestiere - the six 'boroughs' of Venice. I've added an extra page for Giudecca which is not a sestiere - it's actually part of Dorsoduro - but is a separate enough entity to deserve one I think. There will also eventually be pages devoted to the islands and to demolished churches. Artists, architects and saints might get their own pages too, some time in the future. And I suppose I must point out that, contradictory as it may seem to some, this is a religion-free site. My interest is historical, artistic, and also non-pompous. I am respectful of others' beliefs, usually, but expect them to be respectful of my personal convictions too, which involve considerable scepticism towards organised religions.

Each church's history is told, followed by a description of its architecture, artistic highlights, unique features, and/or any interesting stories. The degree to which each topic is covered will vary, depending on the information available and what makes the church interesting and worth visiting, as will the amount of personal observation and opinion in each piece. The latter depends on if the church has been visited by me, and how recently, and it's this aspect that will keep the site improving for a good long while, I think. My intention is to tell you what makes each church special, rather then to list all of its features. Each entry also tells you the nearest vaporetto stop and opening times, where known. I'll endeavour to keep these times as accurate as possible, but it's always a good idea to check before travelling, and to be prepared for disappointment.

The colour photos are all mine too, except where noted.

Jeff Cotton
 

Sources

Some books have proven invaluable, these are...

Guide books

John Freely
Strolling through Venice
Tauris Parke 2008

Describes itself as 'the definitive walking guidebook' to Venice, and that's no idle boast. Also the only guide book that covers all of Venice's churches. The 2008 edition is a straight reprint of the Penguin edition of 1994; which was disappointing, yes, but also reinforces the need for this here web-site. Although you might argue that the hundreds of years before 1994 are more important than the fourteen since, and you'd have a point.



Antonio Manno
The Treasures of Venice
White Star Publishers 2004

It's plush and gorgeous and illustrated in full-colour throughout. It's also really a bit too heavy to carry around with you, but I have done so, on a few trips, because it's just so comprehensive and knowledgeable. I also like the way it occasionally eccentrically tells you a little too much about churches that don't really deserve such in-depth treatment. The standard of the translation is a bit erratic though, this being a book originally written in Italian.


Time Out Venice
Rough Guide to Venice
The best of the 'ordinary' guides for opening times, and some quirky facts.

Ronald Shaw-Kennedy
Art & architecture in Venice Sidgwick & Jackson 1972
Old, but handy for facts about church contents. I bought, on a whim and online, another book by the same author called Venice Rediscovered which is six-years newer. But it turns out to be exactly the same book, unrevised, only in a much larger format.

Architectural guides

Edwina Biucchi and Simon Pilling
Venice - an architectural guide
Batsford 2002
A stylish but comprehensive and accessible guide to Venice's most important buildings. Arranged by sestiere and including modern buildings.





Antonio Salvadori
Venice - a guide to the principal buildings
Canal & Stamperia Editrice 1995
Covering all the buildings of Venice in terse paragraphs and with small black and white photos and stylish drawings. A pretty much essential guide to the fabric of Venice explaining, for example, the different patterns of the stone steps down into the water. Seems to be out of print currently.




Alessandra Boccato
Churches of Venice
Arsenale Editrice 2001
Imperfectly translated (sometimes humourously so) and only dealing with the major churches, but still the only book of its kind - a recent guide to churches only. I have a stiff-backed edition, but this has now been replaced by a paperback edition with more and better photographs (right) and available in Italian and English. I've only ever seen it in Venetian bookshops.








Churches of Venice - The museum in the city
Marsilio/Chorus 2002
The guidebook to the churches that are run by the Chorus association and available from the cash desk inside these churches. Plushly produced and quite detailed, but pretty dry; and the translation is not good, often bordering on the incomprehensible.






And...



Alvise Zorzi Venezia Scomparsa Oscar Mondadori 2001
Not available in English, but an invaluable book about Lost Venice. Lists and describes all of the demolished churches, which will be very handy when I get around to a Demolished Churches page, and when my Italian improves astronomically. Some nice old pics too.


 

With thanks to...
Anne Atwell
Brigitte Eckert
Deborah Howard
Michelle Lovric