We return to the church of S. Giov. Grisostomo by Tullio or Moro Lombardo. The finely proportioned interior holds one of the most precious of Venetian paintings—the altar-piece by Giov. Bellini, over the first chapel to the R., SS. Jerome, Christopher, and Augustine, dated 1513. It is the last of his signed works, and was painted three years before his death. At the high altar is Sebastiano del Piombo’s sensuous painting of the patron saint, with the Baptist, SS. Augustine, Liberale, Catherine of Alexandria, Agnes, and the Magdalen. Over the second altar, L., is a fine relief by Tullio Lombardo. We note the fine Renaissance well-head in the Campo, and retrace our steps to the foot of the Rialto bridge and the pier on the Rio del Carbon.
SECTION XI
S. Moisè—S. Stefano—Site of the Aldine Press—Il Bovolo—S. Vitale—S. Vio—The Salute—The Seminario
FROM the S.W. angle of the Piazza a bustling street leads W. past S. Moisè, a late seventeenth century church by A. Tremignan, whose amazing façade was once thought beautiful. Traversing the Campi S. Maria Zobenigo and S. Maurizio, we reach the large Campo Franc. Morosini. At the N. end of the campo is the fine Gothic brick church of S. Stefano (1294-1320). The principal portal and the windows of the W. front are by the Massegne. The spacious interior contains several good Renaissance monuments, the best being that of Jac. Suriano, L. of entrance; P. Lombardo’s statues of SS. Jerome and Paul stand either side of the third altar, L. aisle; those of the Baptist and St Anthony at either side of the altar in the sacristy. The last is one of the master’s most perfect works in Venice. Near these statues are Bart. Vivarini’s SS. Nicholas and Lawrence. Morosini’s tomb is on the pavement of the nave. We quit the church by the L. aisle, and enter the cloister, with some fragmentary remains of Pordenone’s frescoes.
Crossing the cloister we emerge on the Campo S. Angelo, which we traverse and walk along the Calle della Mandola to the Campo Manin, at the farther end of which is the Cassa di Risparmio (Savings Bank), on the site of the old Aldine Press.
We retrace our steps, and before leaving the campo turn L. by the Calle della Vida, again to the L., and on the R. down the Calle and Corte Contarini del Bovolo reach a beautiful early Renaissance spiral staircase and a Byzantine well-head. We return to the Campo Morosini, at the farther end of which, on the R., is the church of S. Vitale (Vidal), which has a late Carpaccio, S. Vitale on horseback, accompanied by Valeria his wife, his sons Gervasius and Protasius, and other saints. We cross the Grand Canal by the iron bridge, leave the Accademia to the R., turn E. by the calle Nuova S. Agnese, and, after crossing a bridge, reach the church of S. Vio, demolished in 1813 and rebuilt in 1864. A few of the fragments of Tiepolo’s house were incorporated in the new building (p. [109]). The church is only open once a year, S. Vio’s day, but admission at other times may be obtained by applying at the stone mason’s, next door. The Campo S. Vio is associated with one of the most charming legends of Venice. Here lived the blessed Contessa Tagliapietra, whose insistent devotion and frequent visits to a priest at S. Maurizio, on the opposite side of the Grand Canal, were deemed unseemly by her family. Entreaties proving vain, the ferrymen were forbidden to row her across; whereupon the Countess took a thread, laid it upon the waters, and crossed to her devotions without human aid.
We continue E. and after some turning of corners, pass a picturesque little shrine at the end of the calle Barbaro. We cross the Ponte S. Gregorio and at length reach the great plague church of the Salute. The interior contains over the third altar L., Titian’s somewhat faded but still beautiful Descent of the Holy Ghost. The Virgin is drawn from the same model as that of the Assumption in the Accademia. The small ceiling medallions behind the high altar, the four Evangelists and four Fathers of the Church are also by Titian. The St Matthew is the artist’s own portrait. Over the altar of the sacristy is Titian’s St Mark enthroned, attended by SS. Sebastian, Roch, Cosimo, and Damian (1513), sadly spoilt by restoration. The ceiling paintings—the Death of Abel, Abraham’s Sacrifice (Isaac is a lovely child), and David and Goliath are in Titian’s later manner (1543). The space between the windows on the R. wall is covered by Tintoretto’s Marriage at Cana. It is described at length by Ruskin in the Venetian index and is esteemed by the great critic to be “perhaps the most perfect example which human art has produced of the utmost possible force and sharpness of shadow united with richness of local colour.” In the sacristy are also a St Sebastian by Paris Bordone, and two small oval paintings to the R. of the altar, SS. Augustine and Nicholas, usually assigned to Ant. and Bart. Vivarini, attributed, however, by Mr Berenson to Giambono. In the ante-sacristy is a fifteenth century pietà in relief and an early painting (1339), The Virgin and Child with the kneeling donors, Doge Francesco Dandolo, and the Dogeressa Elisabetta, with their name saints.
E. of the Salute is the Seminario with a small collection of sculpture and pictures. Ascending Longhena’s noble staircase we enter the Galleria Manfredini, which contains works by Filippino Lippi and Veronese, and Giorgione’s Apollo and Daphne (p. [202]), probably painted for the panel of a cassone (bridal chest). The ferry from the Salute or the Dogana point will land us near the Piazza.