Restored in 1995 with Save Venice general funds.

Giovanni Bellini’s famous painting of Saint Catherine Enthroned with Saints once adorned this altar in the church of Santi Giovanni e Paolo, but it was unfortunately destroyed by fire in 1867; all that remains of this lost masterpiece is its stone frame and altar, which resembled the architecture in the painting. The marble frame, with its organic motifs, cornucopias, and coffers that contain sculpted and painted rosettes, is typical of the style of Pietro Lombardo and his workshop. Flanking the altar is a pair of elegantly carved sphinx-like hybrid mythological creatures, frequently depicted during the Renaissance.

The altarpiece was eventually replaced by Francesco Bissolo’s Virgin Enthroned with Saints, which is still installed there today.

The work was restored by conservator Toto Bergamo and the Sansovino restoration firm, with the guidance of project directors Emanuela Zucchetta of the Superintendency of Monuments of Venice and Sandro Sponza of the Superintendency of Fine Arts of Venice.

For select projects, conservation dossiers in Italian containing limited textual and photographic documentation may be available for consultation by appointment at the Venice office of Save Venice and the Rosand Library & Study Center. For inquiries, please contact us at venice@savevenice.org.

Unidentified sculptors
Frame and Altar with Sphinxes
c. 1470s, marble