Ca’ Rezzonico

Ca’ Rezzonico is one of the most famous palaces in Venice, located in the Dorsoduro district (sestiere), overlooking the Grand Canal between Palazzo Contarini Michiel and Palazzo Bernardo Nani.

SHORT HISTORY

The palace was designed in 1649 by Baldassarre Longhena for the Bon family. The construction began only in 1667, with the demolition of the existing buildings.

Due to the economic difficulties of the family and the death of Longhena in 1682, the construction was abandoned. Only the facade towards the Grand Canal and a first floor were completed.

The Della Torre-Rezzonico family settled in Venice in 1687. A member of this family, Giambattista, bought the building in 1751. He entrusted the project to Giorgio Massari, who built the second floor in 1752, and completed the palace in 1758.

Between the autumn of 1847 and 1848, the palace was the residence of Carlos María Isidro of Spain, protected by the Austrian government.

In 1888, it was bought by Robert Barrett Browning, son of the English writers Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett Browning, who restored it thanks to the financial support of his wife, the American Fannie Coddington.

In 1906, Robert Barrett Browning, ignoring an offer made to him by Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany, sold the palace to the count and deputy Lionello Hierschel de Minerbi, who in 1935 ceded it to the Municipality of Venice.

Since 1936, the palace became the seat of Museo del Settecento Veneziano (Museum of 18th-century Venice).

ARCHITECTURE

The facade of the palace stands out for its size and monumentality. It is structured on three levels: the ground floor, enriched with ashlar decorations and a water portal with architrave, and two noble floors, characterized by columns and round-arched windows with keystone heads.

The attic is characterized by oval windows, hidden in the complex design of the facade.

Inside, the palace has a large ballroom, which occupies two floors in height, connected to the ground floor by a majestic monumental staircase.

THE MUSEUM

The Museum of 18th-century Venice houses important paintings by Canaletto, Francesco Guardi, Pietro Longhi, Tintoretto, as well as the Tiepolos (father and sons) and numerous terracotta sketches by Giovanni Maria Morlaiter. In the first decade of the 21st century, the Egidio Martini Art Gallery and the Mestrovich Collection were placed inside the museum.

HOW TO GET THERE

Ca’ Rezzonico is located about 1.3 kilometers away from the Venezia Santa Lucia railway station. The closest vaporetto stop is Ca’ Rezzonico, located near the palace, on the waterbus Line 1.