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Santa Maria della Salute Review

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Santa Maria della Salute

Address: Punta della Dogana, Dorsoduro, Venice, 30121
Phone: 041/2743928

Category: Religious Sites
Location: Dorsoduro

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Fodor's Review:

The view of La Salute (as this church is commonly called) from the Riva degli Schiavoni at sunset or from the Accademia bridge by moonlight is unforgettable. Baldassare Longhena was 32 years old when he won a competition to design a shrine honoring the Virgin Mary for saving Venice from a plague that killed 47,000 residents. Outside, this simple white octagon is adorned with a colossal cupola lined with snail-like buttresses and a Palladian-style facade; inside are a polychrome marble floor and six chapels. The Byzantine icon above the main altar has been venerated as the Madonna della Salute (of health) since 1670, when Francesco Morosini brought it here from Crete. Above it is a sculpture showing Venice (left) on her knees while the plague (right) is driven from the city. The Sacrestia Maggiore contains a dozen works by Titian, including his San Marco Enthroned with Saints altarpiece. You'll also see Tintoretto's The Wedding at Canaan, and on special occasions the altar displays a 15th-century tapestry depicting the Pentecost. For the Festa della Salute, held November 21, Venetians make a pilgrimage here and light candles in thanksgiving for another year's health.

Cost: Church free, sacristy EUR 1.50
Open: Apr.-Sept., daily 9-noon and 3-6:30; Oct.-Mar., daily 9-noon and 3-5:30
Vaporetto: Salute

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