Church of Madonna dell'Orto, Cannaregio, Venice

Madonna dell’Orto

Venice, Italy

The church for lovers of Tintoretto

Images: Didier Descouens, Madonna dell’Orto, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

History of Madonna dell’Orto

Didier Descouens, Madonna dell’Orto, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

A church and monastery were founded here around 1350.

During the building of this church an unfinished statue of the Madonna started getting a reputation for glowing and working miracles. This statue had previously been rejected by the Prior of the church and subsequently was stored in in a garden nearby (the word in Italian for a garden is orto).

The Scuola di San Cristoforo bought the statue, with the intention of increasing offerings towards the cost of the building work. On 18th June 1377 it was placed on the high altar. Since then the church has been known as Madonna dell’Orto (Madonna of the Garden).

For a number of years the church went into decline, being used for stables and as a food and wine store. This culminated in 1966 when a great flood, a large acqua alta, damaged the church further. Following this flood, the church and its paintings were thoroughly restored by Venice in Peril between 1970 and 1980.

About Madonna dell’Orto

Didier Descouens, Madonna dell’Orto, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The church is a classic example of Venetian Gothic architecture and contains real masterpieces.

This was Tintoretto’s church and he is buried here (in the chapel to the right of the presbytery). The painter lived close-by at Fondamenta dei Mori.

His paintings here include The Last Judgment, the Golden Calf and St. Agnes all from 1562 to 1564.

Other art includes work by Titian, Van den Dyck, Antonio Molinari, Savoldo, Cima da Conegliano and others.

The church housed the painting Madonna and Child by Giovanni Bellini which was stolen in 1993.

Google Map Location

Visiting Madonna dell’Orto

Useful Information

Location/Waterbus

Vaporetto Line 4.1, Line 4.2, Line 5.1, Line 5.2

Waterbus stop: Madonna dell’Orto / St Alvise – 10 min walk

Tip: Nearby is the church of St Alvise plus Camp dei Mori (the Square of the Moors) plus Venice Ghetto is a ten minute walk away.

Opening Times

Opening Times: Monday to Saturday 10.30am-5pm

Chorus Church

This church is part of the Venice Chorus Scheme. Entry is €3,50 but if you plan to see a number of churches, a Chorus Scheme ticket is cheaper. View the Chorus Scheme page here.