The Colleoni Statue – The Scuola di S. Marco – S. Maria dei Miracoli

Fresh from the memories stirred by the mansions of Venice’s ruling families, we now turn toward the more monumental legacy of the Republic: the great churches of the Friars — together forming the true Walhalla of Venice.

S. Zulian: Hidden Treasures off the Merceria

Entering the Merceria from Piazza San Marco — near the site of the Casa del Morter — we follow the busy artery of the city. A few hundred yards along, a small turning on the right, the ramo S. Zulian, leads to the modest church of San Zulian.

Though often overlooked, it houses:

• Two lesser works by Veronese
• A compelling Virgin and Child with Saints by Boccaccino
• One of Campagna’s finest reliefs — a moving depiction of the dying Christ

A quiet beginning before greater magnificence unfolds.

Calle del Paradiso & S. Maria Formosa

From the Campo della Guerra, crossing the Ponte della Guerra and continuing eastward, we reach the Salizzada S. Lio. The second street on the right opens into the picturesque Calle del Paradiso, leading to the Ponte Paradiso.

Here, look up.

A graceful Gothic gable bears the arms of the Foscari and Mocenigo families, alongside a refined 14th-century relief of the Virgin and Child with a donor — a silent witness to centuries past.

Crossing the modern bridge, we arrive at the spacious campo of S. Maria Formosa — one of Venice’s earliest churches, though rebuilt after the 1689 earthquake.

Inside, highlights include:

• Palma Vecchio’s commanding St. Barbara — said to have been modelled by his daughter Violante
• Saints Anthony and Sebastian flanking the composition
• A Virgin of Mercy above, between the Baptist and St. Dominic
• A Pietà by Palma Giovane
• A Last Supper by Bassano

The atmosphere here blends solemnity with painterly richness.

S. Zanipolo: The Pantheon of Venice

Heading northeast along the Calle Lunga and across the Fondamenta Tetta, we reach the Salizzada SS. Giovanni e Paolo.

Before us rises the immense brick apse of S. Zanipolo — the Dominican church begun in 1236 and consecrated in 1430. Dedicated to the Roman martyrs John and Paul, it became the burial place of Venice’s greatest figures.

Here lie:

• Doges
• Admirals
• Statesmen
• Painters — including the Bellini and Palma Giovane

The interior impresses through scale and austerity, though later Renaissance and Rococo additions alter its symmetry.

Ruskin’s Contrast: Gothic Nobility vs. Renaissance Display

Art lovers will recall Ruskin’s passionate critique in The Stones of Venice.

• The tomb of Doge Tomaso Mocenigo (1423): transitional Gothic beauty
• The monument of Doge Andrea Vendramin (1478): technically masterful, yet to Ruskin devoid of spirit

As centuries passed, sepulchral art evolved — from restrained Gothic sarcophagi to increasingly theatrical Renaissance monuments, culminating in the elaborate Rococo excess of the Valier mausoleum.

This church alone narrates that transformation.

Artistic Highlights Inside

Among the many paintings:

• Bartolomeo Vivarini’s powerful St. Augustine
• Lotto’s Apotheosis of St. Antonino
• Rocco Marconi’s Christ with Saints Andrew and Peter
• Alvise Vivarini’s Christ Bearing the Cross
• Bissolo’s serene Madonna

Each work adds another layer to the Dominican temple’s layered identity.

The Colleoni Monument: Power Cast in Bronze

Stepping into the campo outside, we encounter what many consider Europe’s finest equestrian statue.

The monument to Bartolomeo Colleoni captures the condottiero in full armour, upright in the saddle — every line of his face expressing iron will and command.

Designed by Verrocchio, master of Leonardo da Vinci, and completed after his death by Alessandro Leopardi, the statue represents a collaboration between Florentine conception and Venetian execution.

Colleoni left his fortune to Venice on the condition that his statue stand in Piazza San Marco. The Senate, bound by law, cleverly placed it instead before the Scuola di San Marco — fulfilling the spirit, if not the letter, of his wish.

Scuola di S. Marco

On the north side of the campo stands the Scuola di San Marco, now the city hospital.

Designed in 1485 by Martino Lombardo, with decorative work by Pietro Lombardo, it is one of the most refined Renaissance façades in Venice.

Notable details:

• The elegant lunette above the doorway
• Sculpted lions
• Reliefs of St. Mark healing Anianus and baptising a convert

Venetian Renaissance at its most sophisticated.

S. Maria dei Miracoli: A Renaissance Jewel

A short walk across the Ponte del Cavallo brings us to S. Maria dei Miracoli (1480–1489), designed by Pietro Lombardo.

This small church is pure architectural poetry:

• Delicate marble cladding
• Harmonious proportions
• Refined decorative arabesques

Tullio Lombardo sculpted the Annunciation figures above the choir steps, while Campagna contributed statues of St. Francis and St. Clare.

If S. Zanipolo represents grandeur, Miracoli represents perfection in miniature.

Final Reflections

This route through Venice reveals a profound narrative:

From modest parish churches
To the grand Dominican Pantheon
From Gothic restraint
To Renaissance confidence
From spiritual solemnity
To civic self-assertion in bronze

Venice is never merely seen — it is read, layer by layer.

And nowhere more clearly than between S. Zulian and S. Maria dei Miracoli.