Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari
Basilica di Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari
One of Venice's largest Gothic churches, home to Titian's masterpiece The Assumption of the Virgin above the high altar.
The Frari is the great Franciscan church of Venice. This brick Gothic building was constructed between the 14th and 15th centuries, and its bell tower is the second tallest in the city, after the Campanile of St Mark's. The high altar holds Titian's Assumption of the Virgin, a peak of Renaissance painting. The church also contains Titian's Pesaro Madonna, a triptych by Bellini, and Donatello's wooden statue of St John the Baptist, as well as monuments to Titian himself and to the sculptor Canova. Admission is about €5. The church is open on Sunday afternoons but closed to visitors during morning Mass. Shoulders and knees must be covered. It is about a 10-minute walk from the Rialto Bridge, in the San Polo district.
Opening hours
Mon–Sat 09:00–18:00, Sun 13:00–18:00 (check official website)
Nearby sights
- Scuola Grande di San Rocco
- Ca' Rezzonico
- Accademia Bridge & Gallerie dell'Accademia
- Fondaco dei Turchi (Natural History Museum)
- Peggy Guggenheim Collection
- Teatro La Fenice
- Scala Contarini del Bovolo
- Venetian Ghetto