The Church of San Giobbe is one of the first Renaissance style buildings ever erected in Venice. The history of this edifice goes back to the mid 15th century, when Bernardino of Siena decided to build a place of worship on the site of a oratory dedicated, it too, to San Giobbe. The construction works were financially supported by Cristoforo Moro, one of the Doges of Venice. The original architect was Antonio Gambello, and his work was continued by Pietro Lombardo (reputed architect and sculptor) who kept close to the design envisaged by his predecessor.

In fact, Pietro Lombardo resumed the construction of the Church of San Giobbe in 1470, after a period of more than a decade when the works were stopped (in the context in which they were initiated in 1450). The church was finally consecrated in 1493, fulfilling the ambition of erecting a votive church after the plague spread in Venice in the first half of the 15th century (a total of five votive churches were built after the plague).

Lombardo’s wide contribution to the artistic patrimony of the church is represented by the portal, the main door, the altar arch, as well as by his exceptional work in terms of the interior decorative asset of the edifice. Speaking about the decorative patrimony, what is worth mentioning is at present only a part of the former pictorial and sculptural works can still be admired inside the church, some of them dating back to as early as the mid 15th century, even from before the initiation of the construction works at the church (for instance, the 1540 Il Presepio by Savoldo, Paris Bordon’s Pala con i Santi Pietro, Andrea e Nicolo, and Antonio Vivarini’s 1445 Sant’Antonio da Padova e San Michele).

Works like Carpaccio’s La presentazione di Gesu al Tempio (created in 1510), Giovanni Bellini’s La Vergine in Trono con Angeli Musicanti, and Marco Basaiti’s Cristo nell'Orto (it too created in 1510) were removed from the church and placed and showcased at the Academy Galleries in view of safekeeping and of a better tourist visibility.

The Church of San Giobbe is located in Cannaregio, close to infrastructural hubs like the Santa Lucia Train Station and Ponte del Tre Archi, so it can be easily spotted in the dense architectural landscape of Venice.

Name:
Church of San Giobbe (Chiesa di San Giobbe)
Address:
Campo San Giobbe, Cannaregio, 30100, Venice, Italy
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