San Francesco della Vigna
Encyclopedia
San Francesco della Vigna is a Roman Catholic church in the Sestiere
of Castello
in Venice
, northern Italy
.
churches in Venice. The site, originally a vineyard (Vigna), was donated by Marco Ziani in 1253 for construction of the monastery. A tiny chapel already on the site recalled the spot where an angel supposedly had pronounced Pax tibi Evangelista meus.. to the shipwrecked apostle St. Mark, patron of Venice.
The first church at the site was a triple-nave Gothic
church by Marino da Pisa. A monastery housed the Frati Minori dell'Osservanza, while the Conventuali occupied the Frari across town. By the 16th century, the church building was in need of repair. Two main impulses led to the reconstruction of this church; one was the reform sweeping the order of the Franciscan Observants, and the other was the wishes of Doge Andrea Gritti
, whose family palace neighbored the church. In 1534, this Doge laid the foundation stone for the new church. The nave was roofed over by 1554.
The church was designed in Renaissance
style by Jacopo Sansovino
, with the advice of the Franciscan friar, Fra Francesco Zorzi
. Fra Zorzi based the sizing of the various elements on the number three, because of its association with the Trinity: the nave should be nine paces wide and 27 paces long, each side chapel three paces wide.
Each chapel was sold for 200-350 ducats to aristocratic donors, raising much needed construction funds, granting the rights to place their coat-of-arms in the chapel and to bury their family there. For the right to be buried in the floor of the chancel in front of the high altar, Doge Andrea Gritti paid 1000 ducats. In 1542, Vettor Grimani and his brother Cardinal Marino acquired rights to build the facade for the church. The three sarcophagi for two cardinals and a patriarch from the Grimani
family are no longer in place. The facade of the church was ultimately commissioned from Andrea Palladio
(1562) by Giovanni Grimani.
n marble Doric pilasters
. The choir, which in the past was occupied by the monks during services, is behind the altar. The interior contains an alabaster sculpture of St. Louis of Toulouse, and an early 15th-century Gothic painting of the Madonna of humility
.
The Grimani chapel (first in the left aisle) is decorated with ceiling paintings by Battista Franco, and murals and altarpiece by Federico Zuccari
. The chapel has been restored by the British charity Venice in Peril
, which also restored Palladio's facade in the 1990s.
In the third chapel on the right are paintings by Francesco Fontebasso
: Glory of St. Peter of Alcantara
on the ceiling; on the walls: St. Peter of Alcantara and St. Teresa of Avila, St. Peter of Alcantara and Queen Isabella of Spain, The Death of St Peter of Alcantara and The Assumption of St Peter of Alcantara into Heaven. Also on the walls: two ovals, on the right the cardinal virtues Faith, Hope and Charity by Jacopo Marieschi
and on the left, Religion and Meditation by Francesco Maggiotto. The decoration of the chapel was completed in 1789.
The third chapel to the left, with a dome, is the Sagredo chapel. It honors San Gherardo Sagredo (died 1046, canonized 1076), and is embellished with frescoes by Tiepolo
and sculpture by Andrea Cominelli. It also has monuments to the Doge Niccoló Sagredo (reign 1675-1676) and Alvise Sagredo, both by Giovanni Gai. The spandrels are frescoed by Tiepolo with the four evangelists. The dome has a sotto in su fresco by Gerolamo Pellegrini. The chapel underscores the complex machinations in an oligarchic and aristocratic Venice to uphold the family name.
The church also houses a chapel of the Barbaro family containing the Barbaro ancestral arms, a red circle on a white field, granted in the 12th century after Admiral Marco Barbaro was victorious in Jaffa.
Sestiere
A sestiere is a subdivision of certain Italian towns and cities. The word is from sesto, or sixth; and is thus used only for towns divided into six districts. The best-known example are the sestieri of Venice, but Ascoli Piceno, Genoa, Milan and Rapallo, for example, were also divided into sestieri...
of Castello
Castello
Castello is the Italian word for castle. The Latin word Castellum means reservoir, water tank.Castello may refer to:-Places:*Castello, Venice is the largest of the six sestieri of Venice...
in Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, northern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
.
History
Along with Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari, this is one of two FranciscanFranciscan
Most Franciscans are members of Roman Catholic religious orders founded by Saint Francis of Assisi. Besides Roman Catholic communities, there are also Old Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, ecumenical and Non-denominational Franciscan communities....
churches in Venice. The site, originally a vineyard (Vigna), was donated by Marco Ziani in 1253 for construction of the monastery. A tiny chapel already on the site recalled the spot where an angel supposedly had pronounced Pax tibi Evangelista meus.. to the shipwrecked apostle St. Mark, patron of Venice.
The first church at the site was a triple-nave Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
church by Marino da Pisa. A monastery housed the Frati Minori dell'Osservanza, while the Conventuali occupied the Frari across town. By the 16th century, the church building was in need of repair. Two main impulses led to the reconstruction of this church; one was the reform sweeping the order of the Franciscan Observants, and the other was the wishes of Doge Andrea Gritti
Andrea Gritti
Andrea Gritti was the Doge of Venice from 1523 to 1538, following a distinguished diplomatic and military career.Gritti was born in Bardolino, near Verona. He spent much of his early life in Constantinople as a grain merchant, looking after Venetian interests...
, whose family palace neighbored the church. In 1534, this Doge laid the foundation stone for the new church. The nave was roofed over by 1554.
The church was designed in Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
style by Jacopo Sansovino
Jacopo Sansovino
Jacopo d'Antonio Sansovino was an Italian sculptor and architect, known best for his works around the Piazza San Marco in Venice. Andrea Palladio, in the Preface to his Quattro Libri was of the opinion that Sansovino's Biblioteca Marciana was the best building erected since Antiquity...
, with the advice of the Franciscan friar, Fra Francesco Zorzi
Zorzi
The Zorzi or Giorgi was a family of Venetian origin. They throve in the Late Middle Ages, especially in the remnants of the Latin Empire in Greece, where they controlled the Margraviate of Bodonitsa and through marriage the Duchy of Athens until the Ottoman conquest.Under Nicholas I they took...
. Fra Zorzi based the sizing of the various elements on the number three, because of its association with the Trinity: the nave should be nine paces wide and 27 paces long, each side chapel three paces wide.
Each chapel was sold for 200-350 ducats to aristocratic donors, raising much needed construction funds, granting the rights to place their coat-of-arms in the chapel and to bury their family there. For the right to be buried in the floor of the chancel in front of the high altar, Doge Andrea Gritti paid 1000 ducats. In 1542, Vettor Grimani and his brother Cardinal Marino acquired rights to build the facade for the church. The three sarcophagi for two cardinals and a patriarch from the Grimani
Grimani
The Grimani family were a prominent Venetian patrician family, including three Doges of Venice. They were active in trade, politics and later the ownership of theatres and opera-houses...
family are no longer in place. The facade of the church was ultimately commissioned from Andrea Palladio
Andrea Palladio
Andrea Palladio was an architect active in the Republic of Venice. Palladio, influenced by Roman and Greek architecture, primarily by Vitruvius, is widely considered the most influential individual in the history of Western architecture...
(1562) by Giovanni Grimani.
Interior
The interior of the church has a simplicity and severity befitting a Franciscan church, with plain IstriaIstria
Istria , formerly Histria , is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner...
n marble Doric pilasters
Doric order
The Doric order was one of the three orders or organizational systems of ancient Greek or classical architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian.-History:...
. The choir, which in the past was occupied by the monks during services, is behind the altar. The interior contains an alabaster sculpture of St. Louis of Toulouse, and an early 15th-century Gothic painting of the Madonna of humility
Madonna of humility
Madonna of humility refers to artistic portrayals of the Virgin Mary which depict her as a Madonna sitting on the ground, or sitting upon a low cushion. She may be holding the Child Jesus in her lap...
.
The Grimani chapel (first in the left aisle) is decorated with ceiling paintings by Battista Franco, and murals and altarpiece by Federico Zuccari
Federico Zuccari
Federico Zuccari, also known as Federigo Zuccaro , was an Italian Mannerist painter and architect, active both in Italy and abroad.-Biography:Zuccari was born at Sant'Angelo in Vado, near Urbino ....
. The chapel has been restored by the British charity Venice in Peril
Venice in Peril Fund
The Venice in Peril Fund is a British registered charity. It raises funds to restore and conserve works of art and architecture in Venice, and to investigate ways to protect them against future risks, particularly rising sea levels...
, which also restored Palladio's facade in the 1990s.
In the third chapel on the right are paintings by Francesco Fontebasso
Francesco Fontebasso
Francesco Fontebasso was an Italian painter painter of the late-Baroque or Rococo period of Venice. He first apprenticed with Sebastiano Ricci, but was strongly influenced by his contemporary, Giovanni Battista Tiepolo. In 1761, Fontebasso visited Saint Petersburg and produced ceiling paintings...
: Glory of St. Peter of Alcantara
Peter of Alcantara
Saint Peter of Alcántara, O.F.M. was a Spanish Franciscan friar.- Biography :He was born at Alcántara, Province of Cáceres, Extremadura, Spain. His father, Peter Garavito, was the governor of Alcántara, and his mother was of the noble family of Sanabia...
on the ceiling; on the walls: St. Peter of Alcantara and St. Teresa of Avila, St. Peter of Alcantara and Queen Isabella of Spain, The Death of St Peter of Alcantara and The Assumption of St Peter of Alcantara into Heaven. Also on the walls: two ovals, on the right the cardinal virtues Faith, Hope and Charity by Jacopo Marieschi
Jacopo Marieschi
Jacopo Marieschi was an Italian painter of Vedute, active in his native Venice.He initially trained with his father, the prominent vedute painter, Michele Marieschi, and later with Gaspare Diziani. Also called Giacomo Marieschi.-References:...
and on the left, Religion and Meditation by Francesco Maggiotto. The decoration of the chapel was completed in 1789.
The third chapel to the left, with a dome, is the Sagredo chapel. It honors San Gherardo Sagredo (died 1046, canonized 1076), and is embellished with frescoes by Tiepolo
Giovanni Battista Tiepolo
Giovanni Battista Tiepolo , also known as Gianbattista or Giambattista Tiepolo, was an Italian painter and printmaker from the Republic of Venice...
and sculpture by Andrea Cominelli. It also has monuments to the Doge Niccoló Sagredo (reign 1675-1676) and Alvise Sagredo, both by Giovanni Gai. The spandrels are frescoed by Tiepolo with the four evangelists. The dome has a sotto in su fresco by Gerolamo Pellegrini. The chapel underscores the complex machinations in an oligarchic and aristocratic Venice to uphold the family name.
The church also houses a chapel of the Barbaro family containing the Barbaro ancestral arms, a red circle on a white field, granted in the 12th century after Admiral Marco Barbaro was victorious in Jaffa.
External links
- Campo San Francesco della Vigna, Venice.jc-r.net