Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
but as shafts of sunlight strike, the saintly arrangement glows with a diffuse sense of de-
vout spirituality.
RIVA DEGLI SCHIAVONI
( San Zaccaria)
Stretching west from San Marco, this paved boardwalk is one of the
world's great promenades.
Schiavoni
(literally, 'Slavs') refers to the fishermen from Dal-
matia who arrived in Venice in medieval times and found this a handy spot for casting
their nets. For centuries, vessels would dock and disembark here, the waterfront a Babel
of languages, as traders, dignitaries and sailors arrived from ports around the Mediter-
ranean and beyond.
Paolo Veronese's
Feast in the House of Levi
, in the Gallerie dell'Accademia (
Click
here
), gives you some idea of how the crowd might have looked and dressed, with Turk-
ish, German, North African and Greek merchants wheeling and dealing along the banks.
The great poet Petrarch was among those who found lodgings and inspiration at No 4175,
east of Rio della Pietà. Now many of the grand old mansions serve as pricey hotels, so
you too can bunk here like the merchants of yesteryear.
PROMENADE
LA PIETÀ
MAP
CHURCH
GOOGLE MAP
( 041 522 21 71;
www.pietavenezia.it
; Riva degli Schiavoni; admission €3, guided tour €5; 10.15am-noon &
3-5pm Tue-Fri, 10.15am-1pm & 2-5pm Sat & Sun; Pietà)
Originally called Chiesa di Santa Maria
della Visitazione but fondly nicknamed La Pietà, this harmonious church designed by Gi-
orgio Massari is known for its association with the composer Vivaldi, who was concert-
master here in the early 18th century. Though the current church was built after Vivaldi's
death, its acoustic-friendly oval shape honours his memory, and it is still regularly used as
a concert hall.
Be sure to look up: on the ceiling, Giambattista Tiepolo's gravity-defying
Coronation
of the Virgin
seems to open up the church to the vast heavens themselves.
CHIESA DI SAN GIOVANNI IN BRAGORA
MAP
CHURCH
GOOGLE MAP
( 041 296 06 30; Campo Bandiera e Mori 3790; 9-11am & 3.30-5.30pm Mon-Sat, 9.30-noon Sun;
Arsenale)
F
This serene, 15th-century brick church harmonises Gothic and Renaissance
styles with remarkable ease, setting the tone for a young Antonio Vivaldi, who was bap-
tised here. Look for Bartolomeo Vivarini's 1478
Enthroned Madonna with St Andrew and
John the Baptist,
which shows the Madonna bouncing a delighted baby Jesus on her knee.
