Santa maria della salute
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These seemingly small details give the Salute a very lively and festive appeal. This unique shape is made obvious from the exterior (and made more observable once viewed from a higher angle), marked by the smaller Palladian-style facades of the chapels and the wonderful scroll. The ideal of a centralized domed temple was a Renaissance favorite, but Longhena was the first architect since the early Middle Ages to centralize his temple in the form of an octagon surrounded by an ambulatory. Starting from the top, the balustrade and the cupola, although imposing, lighten the whole exterior of the basilica. The main door is only open on the Salute’s Feast Day every November 21. Taking a closer look, we see the main facade, emphasized by its wide staircase, which highlights the immense portal or main door which is framed by heavy columns and crowned with a tympanum, numerous statues and multiple volutes - it resembles a triumphal arch-design. Hotel Campiello - Popular, good-value little 3-star near St.Located just at the entrance to the Grand Canal, it immediately gives the onlooker a perfect sense of theatrical timing and spacing as it rises from columns of white and pastel orange to greet the hundreds of boats coming in and out of the city. Palazzo Giovanelli e Gran Canal - 4-star on the Grand Canal Hotel L'Orologio - Modern decor overlooking the Grand Canal Palace Bonvecchiati - Stylish, modern 4-star between Rialto and St.
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The vaporetto stop Salute is right next to the church, just one stop across from San Marco/Vallaresso. Visitors are expected to behave and dress with decorum, as in all Italian churches. Note that the building is closed at lunchtimes.
#Santa maria della salute free#
Check information boards in the church or 'what's on' leaflets at the tourist information office for details.Įntrance to this grand church is free (apart from the sacristy). There are sometimes free music performances in the church for example organ vespers in the afternoon. There are more works by Titian on the ceiling three Old Testament scenes (mirrors are provided to help visitors get a better view without craning their necks). Above them Saint Mark is enthroned and looking aloof. Rocco (Roch) with his bleeding plague sore and doctors Cosmo and Damiano holding ointments and apparently discussing treatments. Another Titian hangs over the altar: a plague-referencing study of saints standing around for a chat in their identifying 'regalia': Sebastian in his loincloth with an arrow protruding from his ribcage One of the highlights is Tintoretto's Nozze di Cana with its lovely light treatment of ladies with elegant braided fair hair. Entrance costs €3, which art-lovers will find worth paying. Some of the church's finer paintings are kept in the sacristy:įollow signs to the Sagrestia, which is reached via a narrow passageway by the Titian painting in the main church. The most interesting feature of the interior though, is its design and dramatic spaces. The small side chapels contain paintings by Luca Giordano and one by Titian. Inside, six side-chapels and the high altar open The large stone scrolls buttressing the dome were an inspired touch.
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The exterior is a glorious confection in white: its fanciness not overpowering but suiting the location. The celebration is one of the most heart-felt in Venice, and is called the Festa della Salute. Once a year on the 21st November special masses are held to remember the city's deliverance from plague, and a temporary votive bridge is erected over the Grand Canal. The church was an unusual shape at the time and is still striking today taking the form of an octagon under a massive central dome. A contest was held to design the church, which was won by Baldassare Longhena, then in his twenties or early thirties. Santa Maria della Salute was built 1631-1681 and dedicated to the Madonna in gratitude for the end of an outbreak of plague (the name means St. It stands on the final stretch of the Grand Canal, over the water from St. The lovely curvy shape of Santa Maria della Salute is one of Venice's most pictured landmarks. Recommended B&Bs - affordable, with character Luxury hotels - smart five-star destinations Venice home Places to stay Guidebook Tourist attractions Carnival Festivals & events Entertainment Food & drink Lagoon islands Day trips Travel & transport Venice airports Practicalities Venice map