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San Polo and Santa Croce

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The two smallest of Venice’s six sestieri (districts), San Polo and Santa Croce, were named after their main churches, though the Chiesa di Santa Croce was demolished in 1810. The city’s most famous bridge, the Ponte di Rialto, unites sestiere San Marco (east) with San Polo (west). The Rialto takes its name from Rivoaltus, the high ground on which it was built.

San Polo has two other major sites, Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari and the Scuola Grande di San Rocco, as well as some interesting but lesser-known churches.

Shops abound in the area surrounding the Rialto Bridge. On the San Marco side you’ll find fashions, on the San Polo side, food. Chiesa di San Giacometto, where you see the first fruit vendors as you come off the bridge on the San Polo side, was probably built in the 11th and 12th centuries, about the time the surrounding market came into being. It was built on the site of a 5th-century church, so it’s traditionally considered to be the oldest in the city.

Timing

To do the area justice requires at least half a day. If you want to take part in the food shopping, come early to beat the crowds. Campo San Giacomo dell’Orio, west of the main thoroughfare that takes you from the Ponte di Rialto to Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari, is a peaceful place for a drink and a rest. The museums of Ca’ Pesaro are a time commitment—you’ll want at least two hours to see them both.

San Polo and Santa Croce

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Top Attractions

Fodor’s Choice | Ponte di Rialto (Rialto Bridge).
The competition to design a stone bridge across the Grand Canal attracted the best architects of the late 16th century, including Michelangelo, Palladio, and Sansovino, but the job went to the less famous (but appropriately named) Antonio da Ponte (1512–95). His pragmatic design, completed in 1591, featured shop space and was high enough for galleys to pass beneath. Unlike the classical plans proposed by his more famous contemporaries, Da Ponte’s bridge essentially followed the design of its wooden predecessor; it kept decoration and cost to a minimum at a time when the Republic’s coffers were low due to continual wars against the Turks and the competition brought about by the Spanish and Portuguese opening of oceanic trade routes. Along the railing you’ll enjoy one of the city’s most famous views: the Grand Canal vibrant with boat traffic. | Station: Vaporetto: Rialto.

Fodor’s Choice | Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari.
This immense Gothic church of russet-color brick was completed in 1442 after more than a century of work. I Frari (as it’s known locally) contains some of the most brilliant paintings in any Venetian church. Visit the sacristy first, to see Giovanni Bellini’s 1488 triptych Madonna and Child with Saints in all its mellow luminosity, painted for precisely this spot. The Corner Chapel on the other side of the chancel is graced by Bartolomeo Vivarini’s (1415–84) 1474 altarpiece St. Mark Enthroned and Saints John the Baptist, Jerome, Peter, and Nicholas, which is much more conservative, displaying attention to detail generally associated with late medieval painting. In the first south chapel of the chorus, there is a fine sculpture of Saint John the Baptist by Donatello, dated 1438 (perhaps created before the artist came to Venice), which displays a psychological intensity rare for early Renaissance sculpture. You can see the rapid development of Venetian Renaissance painting by contrasting Bellini with the heroic energy of Titian’s Assumption, over the main altar, painted only 30 years later. Unveiled in 1518, it was the artist’s first public commission and, after causing a bit of controversy, did much to establish his reputation.

Titian’s beautiful Madonna di Ca’ Pesaro is in the left aisle. The painting took seven years to complete (finished in 1526), and in it Titian disregarded the conventions of his time by moving the Virgin out of center and making the saints active participants. The composition, built on diagonals, anticipates structural principals of Baroque painting in the following century.

Scuola Grande di San Rocco.
Saint Rocco’s popularity stemmed from his miraculous recovery from the plague and his care for fellow sufferers. Throughout the plague-filled Middle Ages, followers and donations abounded, and this elegant example of Venetian Renaissance architecture, built between 1517 and 1560 and including the work of at least four architects, was the result. Although it is bold and dramatic outside, its contents are even more stunning—a series of more than 60 paintings by Tintoretto. In 1564 Tintoretto edged out competition for a commission to decorate a ceiling by submitting not a sketch, but a finished work, which he moreover offered free of charge. Moses Striking Water from the Rock, The Brazen Serpent, and The Fall of Manna represent three afflictions—thirst, disease, and hunger—that San Rocco and later his brotherhood sought to relieve. | Campo San Rocco, San Polo 3052 | 30125 | 041/5234864 | www.scuolagrandesanrocco.it | €8 (includes audio guide) | Daily 9:30–5:30. Last entry ½ hr before closing | Station: Vaporetto: San Tomà.

Venice’s Scuola Days

An institution you’ll inevitably encounter from Venice’s glory days is the scuola. These weren’t schools, as the word today translates, but important fraternal institutions. The smaller ones (scuole piccole) were established by different social groups—enclaves of foreigners, tradesmen, followers of a particular saint, and parishioners. The scuole grandi, however, were open to all citizens and included people of different occupations and ethnicities. They formed a more democratic power base than the Venetian governmental Grand Council, which was limited to nobles.

For the most part secular, despite their devotional activities, the scuole concentrated on charitable work, either helping their own membership or assisting the city’s neediest citizens. The tradesmen’s and servants’ scuole formed social security nets for elderly and disabled members. Wealthier scuole assisted orphans or provided dowries so poor girls could marry. By 1500 there were more than 200 minor scuole in Venice, but only six scuole grandi, some of which contributed substantially to the arts. The Republic encouraged their existence—the scuole kept strict records of the names and professions of contributors to the brotherhood, which helped when it came time to collect taxes.

Quick Bites: Caffè dei Frari. Just over the bridge in front of the Frari church is Caffè dei Frari, where you’ll find a delightful assortment of sandwiches and snacks. Established in 1870, it’s one of the last Venetian tearooms with its original decor. | Fondamenta dei Frari, San Polo | 30125 | 041/5241877.

Pasticceria Tonolo. Pasticceria Tonolo, in operation since 1886, is widely considered among Venice’s premier confectionaries. During Carnevale it’s still one of the best places in town for fritelle, fried doughnuts (traditional raisin or cream-filled), and before Christmas and Easter, Venetians order their focaccia, the traditional raised cake eaten especially at holidays, from here well in advance. Closed Monday, and there’s no seating any time. | Calle Crosera, Dorsoduro 3764 | 30123 | 041/5237209.

Worth Noting

Campo San Polo.
Only Piazza San Marco is larger than this square, and the echo of children’s voices bouncing off the surrounding palaces makes the space seem even bigger. Campo San Polo once hosted bull races, fairs, military parades, and packed markets, and now comes especially alive on summer nights, when it’s home to the city’s outdoor cinema. The Chiesa di San Polo has been restored so many times that little remains of the original 9th-century church, and sadly, 19th-century alterations were so costly that the friars sold off many great paintings to pay bills. Though Giambattista Tiepolo is represented here, his work is outdone by 16 paintings by his son Giandomenico (1727–1804), including the Stations of the Cross in the oratory to the left of the entrance. The younger Tiepolo also created a series of expressive and theatrical renderings of the saints. Look for altarpieces by Tintoretto and Veronese that managed to escape auction. San Polo’s bell tower remained unchanged through the centuries—don’t miss the two lions playing with a disembodied human head and a serpent that guard it. | Campo San Polo | 30125 | 041/2750462 Chorus Foundation | www.chorusvenezia.org | €3, Chorus Pass €10 | Church: Mon.–Sat. 10–5, Sun. 1–5 | Station: Vaporetto: San Silvestro, San Tomà.

Ca’ Pesaro.
Baldassare Longhena’s grand Baroque palace is the beautifully restored home of two impressive collections. The Galleria Internazionale d’Arte Moderna has works by 19th- and 20th-century artists such as Klimt, Kandinsky, Matisse, and Miró. It also has a collection of representative works from Venice’s Biennale art show that amounts to a panorama of 20th-century art. The pride of the Museo Orientale is its collection of Japanese art, and especially armor and weapons, of the Edo period (1603–1868). It also has a small but striking collection of Chinese and Indonesian porcelains and musical instruments. | San Stae, Santa Croce 2076 | 30135 | 041/721127 Galleria, 041/5241173 Museo Orientale | www.museiciviciveneziani.it | €8 includes both museums, Museums of San Marco Plus Pass €14 (Apr.–Oct.), Musei Civici Pass €18.50 | Closed Mondays. Open Apr.–Oct., 10–6; Nov.–Mar., daily 10–5. Last entry 1 hr before closing | Station: Vaporetto: San Stae.

San Giacomo dell’Orio.
It was named after a laurel tree (orio), and today trees give character to this square. Add benches and a fountain (with a drinking bowl for dogs), and the pleasant, oddly shaped campo becomes a welcoming place for friendly conversation and neighborhood kids at play. Legend has it the Chiesa di San Giacomo dell’Orio was founded in the 9th century on an island still populated by wolves. The current church dates from 1225; its short unmatched Byzantine columns survived renovation during the Renaissance, and the church never lost the feel of an ancient temple sheltering beneath its 14th-century ship’s-keel roof. In the sanctuary, large marble crosses are surrounded by a group of small medieval Madonnas. The altarpiece is Madonna with Child and Saints (1546) by Lorenzo Lotto (1480–1556), and the sacristies contain 12 works by Palma il Giovane (circa 1544–1628). | Campo San Giacomo dell’Orio, Santa Croce | 30135 | 041/2750462 Chorus Foundation | www.chorusvenezia.org | €3, Chorus Pass €10 | Mon.–Sat. 10–5, Sun. 1–5 | Station: Vaporetto: San Stae.

San Giovanni Elemosinario.
Storefronts make up the façade, and the altars were built by market guilds—poulterers, messengers, and fodder merchants—at this church intimately bound to the Rialto Market. The original church was completely destroyed by a fire in 1514 and rebuilt in 1531 by Antonio Abbondi, who had also worked on the Scuola di San Rocco. During a recent restoration, workers stumbled upon a frescoed cupola by Pordenone (1484–1539) that had been painted over centuries earlier. Don’t miss Titian’s St. John the Almsgiver and Pordenone’s Sts. Catherine, Sebastian, and Roch, which in 2002 were returned after 30 years by the Gallerie dell’Accademia. | Rialto Ruga Vecchia San Giovanni, Santa Croce | 30125 | 041/2750462 Chorus Foundation | www.chorusvenezia.org | €3, Chorus Pass €10 | Mon.–Sat. 10–5. Last entry ¼ hr before closing | Station: Vaporetto: San Silvestro, Rialto.

San Stae.
The church of San Stae—the Venetian name for San Eustacchio (Eustace)—was reconstructed in 1687 by Giovanni Grassi and given a new façade in 1707 by Domenico Rossi. The most renowned Venetian painters and sculptors of the early 18th century decorated this church around 1717 with the legacy left by Doge Alvise Mocenigo II, who’s buried in the center aisle. San Stae affords a good opportunity to see the early works of Tiepolo, Ricci, and Piazzetta, as well as those of the previous generation of Venetian painters. | Campo San Stae, Santa Croce | 30135 | 041/2750462 Chorus Foundation | www.chorusvenezia.org | €3, Chorus Pass €10 | Mon.–Sat. 9–5; Sun. 1-5 | Station: Vaporetto: San Stae.

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