Restored in 1995 with Save Venice general funds.

In 1810 this niche with a large stone basin surmounted by a statue of Saint John the Baptist was brought to Santo Stefano from the suppressed church of Sant’Angelo in order to adapt the former Contarini chapel into a Baptistery.

The sculptor and painter Giulio dal Moro, born in Verona and active primarily in Venice, trained in the workshop of his father, Battista dal Moro, and in his mature career would become well known as a follower of Jacopo Sansovino and Alessandro Vittoria. The overall conception and delicate facial features of Dal Moro’s Saint John the Baptist are indebted to Sansovino’s earlier version in the Corner Chapel in the church of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari, while the figure’s elongated proportions and muscular anatomy recall the work of Vittoria.

The work was restored by conservator Toto Bergamo and the Sansovino restoration firm, with the guidance of project director Ettore Merkel 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.

Giulio dal Moro (1555–1616)
Saint John the Baptist
1592, marble
104 cm tall

Niche with Baptismal Font
1592, marble

Chorus Association: Church of Santo Stefano