Church of San Francesco della Vigna

When the Franciscan Friars first arrived in Venice, they were given a small refuge in the vineyard of the nobleman Marco Ziani, then the Friary progressively extended, thereby becoming one of the largest Friaries in the City.

The first Gothic style church in Venice, S. Francesco della Vigna was built in 1300 along with a small Franciscan friary. In the following two centuries, it was progressively enlarged making it one of the largest monasteries in the city. In 1543, the architect Jacopo Sansovino drew up the plan to expand the church, consulting with the cabbalistic theories of Father Francesco Zorzi. The façade of the church was constructed in 1562 on a design by Palladio. The church has a single nave with several small chapels on both sides, adorned with masterpieces by Fra Antonio da Negroponte, Antonio Vivarini, Palma the Younger, Alessandro Vittoria, Paolo Veronese, Girolamo Pellegrini, Giambattista Tiepolo, Pietro and Tullio Lombardo, Giovanni Bellini.

Opening times:
From 8am to 12.30 am and from 3pm to 7pm
Free entry

Contact:
Tel.: +39 041 5206102
E-mail: adriano.campesato@gmail.com
 

For further information : www.ofmve. it