SS. Giovanni e Paolo

Description:

• This massive Gothic church was built by the Dominican order from the 13th to the 15th century and, together with the Frari Church in San Polo, is second in size only to the Basilica di San Marco. An unofficial Pantheon where 25 doges are buried (a number of tombs are part of the unfinished facade), the church, commonly known as Zanipolo in Venetian dialect, is also home to a number of artistic treasures.

  Visit the Cappella del Rosario through a glass door off the left transept to see the three recently restored ceiling canvases by Paolo Veronese, particularly The Assumption of the Madonna. Also recently restored is the brilliantly colored Polyptych of St. Vincent Ferrer (ca. 1465) attributed to a young Giovanni Bellini, in the right aisle. You'll also see the foot of St. Catherine of Siena encased in glass.

  Anchoring the large and impressive campo, a popular crossroads for this area of Castello, is the statue of Bartolomeo Colleoni, the Renaissance condottiere who defended Venice's interests at the height of its power and until his death in 1475. The 15th-century work is by the Florentine Andrea Verrocchio; it is considered one of the world's great equestrian monuments and Verrocchio's best.

• © Frommer's 2012

Awards:

Frommer's

•  Recommended 2010