Santa Maria della Salute

Longhena's great Baroque votive church at the mouth of the Grand Canal

Santa Maria della Salute occupies one of the great architectural positions in Europe, at the tip of the Dorsoduro peninsula where the Grand Canal meets the Giudecca Canal. Baldassare Longhena's design, completed in 1681, creates a landmark visible from almost everywhere on the canal — the great octagonal drum and the two giant scrolled buttresses are instantly recognisable.

The interior is cool and harmonious, with a circular plan that draws the eye upward. The sacristy contains three important Titian paintings, including Saint Mark Enthroned and Cain and Abel, as well as a major Tintoretto on the ceiling. The exterior terrace offers a fine view across to the Punta della Dogana and the beginning of the Grand Canal.

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A story
The Salute was built as a votive church — a thank-offering to the Virgin for delivering Venice from the plague of 1630–31, which had killed a third of the city's population. Every year on 21 November, Venetians cross a temporary pontoon bridge over the Grand Canal to attend Mass here. The procession has continued without interruption since 1631.

Other places in Dorsoduro