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| Cannaregio Castello Dorsoduro Giudecca San Marco San Polo Santa Croce |
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The Lido |
Mazzorbo 15. San Michele Arcangelo 16. Santa Caterina ...and the rest 17. San Clemente 18. San Francesco del Deserto 19. San Lazzaro degli Armeni 20. San Michele in Isola San Michele Arcangelo 21. San Servolo 22. Sant'Erasmo  |
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History The original Benedictine church, dedicated to St Nicholas of Myra (a.k.a. Santa Claus), was founded in 1044 and renovated in 1316. The church as you see it today was rebuilt on a different spot, begun by Tommaso Contin in 1626 and finished by Matteo Cirtoni in 1629. The church houses the remains of St Nicholas (the patron saint of sailors) although some say his remains remain in Bari. The story is that the Venetian fleet on its way to Joppa (Jaffa) in 1100 stopped off at Myra (Bari) in search of the bones of St Nicholas. It is said that they tortured the four Christian keepers of the shrine, but learned nothing. They decided to make do with the bones of Saint Theodore (Venice's patron saint before St Mark) but then a sweet smell began to emanate from behind the altar, leading them to the bones of St Nicholas, which they then took too. It is to this church that the doge during the Festa della Sensa (or Ascension Day Festival) celebrated the marriage of Venice and the sea by throwing a gold ring into the lagoon. The ceremony continues to this day, with the Mayor standing in for the Doge. The church Façade unfinished. The monument over the main doorway is to Doge Domenico Contarini, who founded the original church, and dates from the 17th Century. Interior An aisleless nave with six communicating side chapels. Baroque polychrome marble altar housing remains of Saints Nicholas and Theodore. Wooden choir behind the altar dated 1636 by Giovanni Da Crema and Camillo di San Luca, with panels depicting 27 Episodes from the Life of St Nicholas. Art highlights All from 17th/18th Centuries. Fresco on inside façade is Venice Paying Homage to St Nicholas by Girolamo Pellegrini. Another highlight is The Ascension of Christ by Pietro Muttoni, known as Pietro della Vecchia. A visit Inside it looms - high grubby/sandy walls with mid-grey architectural detailing. Where perspective makes the gap between the walls narrow behind the high altar this detailing looks somewhat too big and out of scale, but elsewhere it's fine. The church is aisleless with connected chapels, three on each side and there's a Baroque high altar with a riot of polychrome marble inlay and a sarcophagus on top, where a pediment should be. This contains the remains of three saints, including Father Christmas. No big name art but a nice and warm fresco of Venice Paying Homage to St Nicholas over the entrance by Girolamo Pellegrini and an attractive Ascension by Pietro della Vecchia on the first altar on the left as you enter. The monastery Founded and renovated at the same time as the church, with a cloister added in the 16th Century. Stood in for a Brazilian monastery in the James Bond film Moonraker, which was filmed mostly in Venice. Now a study centre. Campanile Baroque, dates from rebuilding and so erected in 1626-1629. The church in art The Doge in the Bucentaur at San Nicolo di Lido on Ascension Day by Guardi (see right) is in the Louvre. Opening times |
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Sant'Antonio |
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 Santa Maria Assunta Founded in 15th Century and later rebuilt. Contains 17th and 18th C works by G. Forabosco, G. Lama and E. Pittoni.  Santa Maria Elisabetta Built in mid 16th Century as an oratory and converted into a church in 1627, with consecration following in 1671.  The church of the Suore Bianchi (Suore del Sacro Cuore?) |
 Santa Maria della Vittoria Built 1935-33 to a design by Giuseppe Torres as a memorial to the Italian dead of WWI. AKA the Venice War memorial. The large green dome seen as you approach the lido by vaporetto.  Santa Maria Nascente Small church attached to the Ospedale al Mare. Built in 1932 to a neo-gothic design by engineer A. Spandri. Panel paintings and frescoes by G. Cherubini.  A photo taken in 1932. |
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History Original church and Dominican monastery dedicated to St John the Baptist was built 1363-1417 thanks to a bequest by Marco Michiel. This church burned down in 1474 and was rebuilt and enlarged, reopening in 1511 and dedicated to St Peter Martyr. The church was closed in 1808 and its art moved to the Accademia Gallery. Reopened five years later due to an initiative by Don Stefano Tosi, with art from the other suppressed churches and monasteries on Murano. Restored in 1922-28. Art highlights Two by Giovanni Bellini - The Assumption of the Virgin (now in the sacristy) which was originally housed in the church of Santa Maria degli Angeli and the much more spectacular The Madonna with Doge Agostino Barbarigo. This was originally in the apartment of Doge Agostino Barbarigo in the Doge's Palace before it was moved to the church of San Michele in 1501. It came here in 1815 and was relatively recently returned to this church after years in restoration. Sts Nicholas, Charles Borromeo And Lucy by Palma Il Giovane and The Baptism Of Jesus by Jacopo Tintoretto. St Agatha in Prison Visited by St Peter and an Angel and St Jerome in the Desert by Veronese. which was also originally in the nearby church of Santa Maria degli Angeli.
The sacristy |
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History Founded in the 15C and renovated in 1519, suppressed in 1826 and converted for use as a glass factory and warehouse. Now houses a branch of the Murano Glass Museum. Lost art The Madonna of the Orange Tree by Cima da Conegliano, now in the Accademia, was originally sited here. Vaporetto Museo |
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History A document of 999 says that refugees from the mainland founded this church in the 7th Century and dedicated it to the Virgin. The church was rededicated when the body of St Donatus was brought here from Cephalonia in 1125. This date also seems to be when the church was built in its current form, with the work completed in 1141, a date which is recorded on the mosaic floor. Baroque redecoration followed in the 18th Century and then restoration in 1858-73 returned the church to its previous appearance with major rebuilding of the apse. It was this restoration that Hugh Honour condemned for 'bastardising' the church so that it was neither 12th or 19th Century in appearance but a bad mixture of the two. A lot of this work was reversed during later restoration, especially in the 1970s. The church Naked brick and terracotta. The lovely two-tiered blind arcaded apse (see photo top left) seen across the campo and the canal is usually one's first, jaw-dropping, view of this church. The rather plain main façade, around the back to the left, cannot compete. Interior Latin-cross with nave separated from aisles by two rows of Greek marble columns with Veneto-Byzantine capitals. 15th Century ship's-keel roof. The wonderful polychrome mosaic pavement (see below left) was restored and completely re-laid in the 1970s. The high altar contains the remains of St Donatus. Four bones of the dragon he supposedly slew by spitting at it hang behind the altar. Mosaic of The Madonna above in apse. Campanile Detached Romanesque 12-13th Century Opening times Monday-Saturday 8.30-12.00, 4.00-7.00 Sunday 4.00-6.00 Vaporetto Museo |
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History Built in the 18th century(?), the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie (also known as 'Le Cappuccine') is all that's left of a convent complex which was suppressed in 1806.  Ferdinando Ongania |
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History Perhaps originally dating from the 11th Century. Proven foundation in 16th Century and said to be the work of Andrea Tirali, with later enlargements and restorations. Art
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History Work began in early 11th Century on a church to house the remains of St Fosca, the virgin martyr of Ravenna, and those of St Maura, her nurse and partner in martyrdom. The remains of both had been brought here some time before. Porch added in 12th Century. The church The interior is Greek-cross shaped, plain and calm. On the exterior is an early 15th Century bas-relief St Fosca Being Worshipped by her Confreres (see below right).  |
 Photos above and below by Brigitte Eckert  |
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Interior |
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 Photo by Brigitte Eckert |
History There was an old monastery church of this name on Mazzorbo, but this doesn't look like it. |
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History Between the 7th and 17th Centuries four monasteries and five churches were built on the island of Mazzorbo, of which only this one church remains. The original church may date back to 783. The current building is early 15th Century Romanesque-gothic, restored in the 16th Century. Suppressed in 1806. Further restoration took place in 1922-25. 'Heavy-handed' is the phrase used by my guide book to describe this latter restoration. The church There's a marble relief of 1368 of The Marriage of St Catherine over the door and a painting of The Baptism of St Catherine and St Mary Magdalene by Giuseppe Salviati over the high altar. There is a barco (nun's gallery) and a ship's-keel roof.
Campanile Opening times Friday-Sunday 11.00-1.00, 2.00-5.00
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History The Island had long been used to house pilgrims when in 1432 it was given to the canons of the Santa Maria della Carità monastery in Venice. The church, which had been built in the Romanesque style in 1131 was enlarged in the late 15th Century. In 1642 it was bought by the Camaldolite congregation of Monte Rua, who rebuilt the church from 1653-1750. This work has been attributed to Andrea Cominelli in the pay of Bernardo Morosini. The façade of 1488 was restored at this time but kept its Codussi-influenced appearance. Morosini family busts and monuments are to be found on the façade and inside. The monastery was closed by Napoleon and since then the island has housed a lunatic asylum (from 1844 until 1992, and initially for women only) and a cat sanctuary. It's now a luxury hotel. I'm assuming that the monastery was demolished to build the asylum/hotel complex as the hotel looks like a big pink hospital, and the windows in these photos of the asylum in 1979 look the same as the windows of the hotel. The photographer of the asylum in 1979, Raymond Depardon, also produced a book and a film of the San Clemente asylum. Art highlights My most recent guidebook says that paintings by such 17th Century artists as Marieschi, Zanchi, Trevisani and Marchetti are being kept in storerooms awaiting replacement. But the hotel website just says 'only a few canvases survive'. Lost art Statues of Faith and Hope, stolen from here, can be seen in the Sant'Apollonia Diocese Museum. They were dragged along the seabed wrapped in tyres, we're told, and the marks can still be seen on them. A private boat for the hotel, which anyone can use, goes from the Molo. |
 Photos taken in 1937. |
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Tranquil History Tradition says that St Francis himself stopped here in 1219-20 on his return from Egypt and preached to the birds, a miracle recorded by Giotto in the frescoes in the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua. The first church here built from 1228-33. Expanded at the end of the 13th Century and restored (with a cloister added) in 1453. The monks deserted the island because of a malaria outbreak in the 15th Century (hence the del Deserto in the name) and some more were forced off the island by the Napoleonic army in the early 19th, but returned both times. Major unsympathetic restoration 1921-23. Better restoration work in 1962. Opening times Tuesday-Saturday 9.00-11.00, 3.00-5.00 Sunday 3.00-5.00 Island accessible only by private boat. Admission by voluntary donation. |
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History This island had provided shelter for pilgrims since the 12th Century and since many of them had leprosy it was decided to build a hospital here. In Venetian dialect leprosy is 'mal di San Lazzarro' after Lazarus, the beggar who was also a leper. After the lepers were moved out, to the new Ospedale di San Lazzaro dei Mendicanti at San Zanipolo, the island was uninhabited for several centuries. In 1717 the island was given to an Armenian monk called Manouk Bedrosian, also known as Mekhitar. He and his 17 monks (known as the Mekhitarist Fathers) restored the existing church and built the monastic complex we see today. There is a library here, a printing press, an archaeological museum and an art gallery - all devoted to Armenian culture and art. The monastery was the only one in Venice to escape closure by Napoleon - he favoured the Armenians and claimed that this was an educational, not religious, institution. The library was much visited by Byron - he rowed out three times a week during his visit of 1816-17 - to study Armenian and help with an English-Armenian grammar. A small room off the library contains memorabilia of his visits. The church was rebuilt after a fire in 1883. The church An 18th Century cloister provides access to the church. There are paintings by Francesco Maggiotto, Francesco Zugno, and Pietro Novelli. More art upstairs, including one by Tiepolo. The monastery in literature The premise of A Mapmaker's dream: The meditations of Fra Mauro, cartographer to the court of Venice by James Cowan is that the story told in the novel is a true one, with the manuscript having been found by a scholar researching the life of Byron in the library of San Lazzaro. Opening times Guided tours 3.20-5.00 daily. Take the 3.10 vaporetto (line no. 20) from San Zaccaria which is met by the priest who conducts the 75 minute tours of the complex. The admission fee is 6. |
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History The original church was founded in the 10th Century and dedicated to to the Archangel Michael. A monastery was built too and housed monks of the Camaldolite order founded by St Romuald. Amongst the monks who lived here were Fra Mauro and Fra Mario Capellari who became Poe Gregory XVI. The church was enlarged and consecrated in 1221. Rebuilt in current form 1469-78 by Mauro Codussi, this is his first building in Venice and Venice's first church in the Renaissance style. The design of the façade and its use of Istrian stone was very influential on Venetian church architecture. The hexagonal Cappele Emiliani (see far below right) to the left of the façade was added in 1530 by Guglielmo Bergamasco and repaired by Sansovino in 1560-62. The gothic doorway to the right of the façade leads to a 15th Century cloister (see below). Campanile 40m (130ft) electromechanical bells Built in 1460, an unusually complex design with brick relief decoration and a dome with a stone pinnacle. Lost art |
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 Photos by Brigitte Eckert  |
History The island was inhabited from the 8th Century by Benedictine monks, then Benedictine nuns until 1616, when some nuns who'd been chased from Crete by the Turks took possession. The convent remained here (from 1109) until 1715, when it was converted into a hospital for soldiers by the San Giovanni di Dio Hospitaler Friars. The church was consecrated 1470. The complex was inhabited by various orders, used as a grain store, occasionally left deserted and housed plague victims for a while. From 1734-49 the church was rebuilt to a design by Giovanni Scalfarotto. But another source says that work began on the 9th of March 1759 with the exterior completed in 1761 The same year that Jacopo Marieschi painted the ceiling of the nave with The Glory of San Giovanni di Dio before the Virgin Mary and that of the presbytery with The three theological virtues. In 1810 a Nacchini organ was acquired from the suppressed church of Santa Maria del Pianto. Part of the old monastery was converted into a military hospital, and then in 1725 a psychiatric hospital (or an 'asylum for the insane' as an older guidebook puts it) which closed in 1978. There was considerable rebuilding in 1936. The complex currently houses a centre for training in architectural conservation, Venice International University, and, since 2006, the Psychiatric Hospital Museum of San Servolo. Campanile Completed on the 15th of September 1456 according to a plaque. The asylum in literature In Shelley's poem Julian and Maddalo he commemorates a visit he made with Byron to San Servolo to visit a man driven mad by disappointment and a lover's abandonment. The place is described as a windowless, deformed and dreary pile. San Servolo was the setting for Jeannette Wintersons 1987 novel The Passion. Vaporetto San Servolo (line no. 20 from San Zaccaria) Opening times Guided tours: details here and the island has a website as does the Psychiatric Hospital Museum. |
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History The original church of St.Erasmo, built ???? at the southern end of the island, was altered first in the 16th and then in the 18th century. A drawing by Giacomo Guardi in the Museo Correr Library shows a church with two rectangular facades and a bell-tower similar to of Sant'Alvise. That church was demolished by Napoleon. The present church, built in the middle of the island, was opened in 1929.  |
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