Façade of the Church of the Jesuits, 1715 – 1729
Church of the Jesuits, Venice

The Church of the Jesuits was built by the Crociferi in the 12th century. In 1657 the church and nearby monastery was acquired by the Jesuit order, and the church was rebuilt in 1715-1729. The façade of the Church was built by Gian Battista Fattoretto (after a design by Domenico Rossi) with money given by the Manin family. This imposing example of early-18th century Baroque architecture is divided into two orders and is surmounted by a pediment with the Assumption of the Virgin and Angels by Giuseppe Torretto. There are statues of the twelve Apostles by various sculptors of the 17th and 18th centuries on plinths and columns and in the niches.
After many years of neglect the façade needed both surface and structural restoration. Most of the surface damage was due to years of aggressive environmental pollution: the marble and Istrian stone had blackened and showed signs of initial disintegration. The project was divided into two phases: phase one, completed in 2000, determined the extent of the work required and included preliminary chemical and physical analyses and a photogrammetric survey of the entire façade. Phase two consisted in the actual cleaning and consolidation of the façade. Arcadia Ricerche did the preliminary chemical and physical tests and Sat Survey undertook the photogrammetry survey. Restoration was carried out by Edil Restauri Srl.