Restored from 1988 to 1991 with Save Venice general funds.

Pietro Lombardo’s intricately carved marble pilasters are among the most precious sculptural decorations of the church of San Giobbe, which was built in the 1460s. Yet the history of the site extends back into the fourteenth century: in 1378 Giovanni Contarini purchased a plot of land in Cannaregio in order to build a hospice for the poor and a small oratory dedicated to Saint Job (San Giobbe). In 1428, the property was bequeathed to the Observant Friars of the Franciscan order by Contarini’s heirs. The generosity of Doge Cristoforo Moro, who was elected to his position at the head of the Venetian state in 1462, allowed the Franciscans to build a larger church. When Moro died in 1471, he left a considerable sum of money to continue embellishing the church and monastery.

Most of the design and construction of the church can be attributed to Pietro Lombardo, one of the most important architects and sculptors active in Venice in the second half of the fifteenth century. Pietro and his workshop produced sculptural decorations for the interior, including the marble pilasters throughout the church, as well as the main portal. The Carrara marble pilasters feature highly refined arrangements of floral and foliate motifs rendered in low relief, bending and curling gracefully as they mirror one another.

After Save Venice adopted this restoration project, Venice’s Superintendency of Monuments and expert stone restorers took advantage of the opportunity to use the pilasters to develop a new method to clean and desalinize stonework. The stone was submerged in distilled water inside large, modular steel vats for several weeks to wash out the salts that had accumulated over the centuries. This technique proved to be successful, and was used for similar restoration work funded by Save Venice at the church of Santa Maria dei Miracoli.

The restoration was overseen by conservator Ottorino Nonfarmale, with the guidance of project director Mario Piana of the Superintendency of Monuments 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.

Pietro Lombardo (c. 1430–1515)
Pilasters with Foliate Motifs
c. 1474, Carrara marble

Chorus Association: Church of San Giobbe