Restored in 1985 with Save Venice general funds.

This painting of the Martyrdom of Saint Theodore is located on the right wall of the chapel dedicated to Saint Theodore near the high altar of the church of San Salvador. The canvas had been attributed variously to Bonifacio de’ Pitati, Paris Bordone, and Paolo Veronese. It is now believed to be the work of Paduan painter Stefano dell’Arzere.

Theodore was the original patron saint of Venice before this title was bestowed upon Saint Mark, following the translation of his relics from Alexandria in 829. Theodore is also a patron saint of soldiers, and in this scene soldiers accompany members of the Scuola Grande di San Teodoro, one of Venice’s powerful lay confraternities, as witnesses to the saint’s final testament of faith, his martyrdom. Although the actual event took place during the fourth century in what is now a province of Anatolia in Turkey, the Torre dell’Orologio (clock tower) of the Piazza San Marco appears in the background, as if relocating the story to contemporary Venice and further collapsing temporal and geographical distance.

During conservation treatment, the date of 1553 was discovered on the arch to the right of the composition. In addition, the initials of the Scuola Grande di San Teodoro were found along the margin, thus confirming the patronage of the original commission.

The painting was restored by conservators Serafino and Ferruccio Volpin, 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.

Stefano dell’Arzere (1520–1573) [attr.]
The Martyrdom of Saint Theodore
c. 1553, oil on canvas
387 x 414 cm