TOMB TINTORETTO

1518-1594

MADONNA DELL’ORTO

 

Tintoretto Tomb & Chapel

This funerary monument created during the High Renaissance, combines classical architectural forms with expressive sculpture. The figures are arranged in a balanced composition. Explore how each element contributes to the overall meaning.
INTERACTIVE OVERVIEW

The Chapel

TAP THE IMAGE TO EXPLORE DETAILS

A rectangular, basilical plan with three naves (one main nave and two side aisles). There is a large, pentagonal apse, containing many of Tintoretto’s masterpieces.
\
×

INSCRIPTION

Content Here

\
×

TITIAN PORTRAYED AS AN OLD MAN

Content Here

\
×

Title Here

Content Here

\
×

Title Here

Content Here

\
×

Title Here

Content Here

\
×

Title Here

Content Here

\
×

Title Here

Content Here

×

8

Content Here

×

Title Here

Content Here

×

Title Here

Content Here

×

Title Here

Content Here

×

Title Here

Content Here

Tintoretto was interred in this chapel in 1873, years after his death. It is not known the chapels’ use prior to this time.
Jacopo died at the age of 75 in 1594 from a fever.

Before his death in 1594 Tintoretto expressed his wish to be buried with his father in law Marco Episopi (De Vescovi) here, in his parish church. Marco was buried below the 16th century organ in the central nave. When Tintoretto’s daughter died in 1590 before he did, she was buried there too and later his son Domenico who died in 1635.

In 1864, When Venice was under Austrian control, a restorer named von Schmit wanted to restore the church to its Gothic appearance. He started by restoring the floor and moving all the tombstones.

In 1866, while renovating the floor underneath the organ, 4 skeletons were found lying in the pit of Vescovi’s tomb. They were identified as the Tintoretto’s.

In 1873, a specially prepared side chapel was made ready for the remains of the Tintoretto family.

At first, the remains were placed in one of the side walls.

In 1937 the bodies were moved once again to the floor tomb.

The tomb of Tintoretto’s father in law (Marco Episopi De Vescovi) can be found on the floor in the Mauro chapel.

THE TOMB

pointer
×

1. WALL PLAQUE

The bones moved at least 3 times in the church.
1. In 1594, when Tintoretto died he requested to be buried with his father in law.
2. In 1866, during renovations, the bones were found under the organ in the central nave.
3. In 1837, a side chapel was designated for the remains.
4. They were moved to one of the side walls, not sure when or which wall
5. In 1937, the remains were moved to the current floor tomb.

This plaque and the 2 underneath are what is left from before the floor tomb was made in 1937. They commemorate the Tintoretto family. It looks like at one time, at least one of the plaques were on the floor on the left side of the chapel. The biggest one reads:

the ashes of sturdy Jacopos
immortal with the name of Tintoretto
in those of the children Maria and Domenico
and by his father-in-law Marco Vescovi
than in another part of the church
in the same ark they rested
the municipality of venice
here
in the year MDCCCLXVI (1866)
he wanted answers

Is this true? Can it be seen today still?
In 1930, new restorations eliminated the neo-Gothic references in the Tintoretto chapel and a large plaque on the left wall was moved outside the church, in the field towards the canal, where the names of the fallen of the world wars are now engraved.

pointer
×

3. FLOOR TOMB

The family was moved once more in 1937. From the wall, the urn was transferred to the centre of the chapel floor and sealed with a plaque written in Latin. At the base of the terra cotta statue is a plaque commemorating the event.

pointer
×

4. PLAQUE UNDER BUST

This plaque under the statue commemorates the move of the remains from an urn behind the wall to the floor tomb in 1937

pointer
×

2. BUST OF TINTORETTO

By Napoleone Martinuzzi in 1938

HISTORICAL OVERVIEW

The Story Behind the Painting

Tintoretto's Final Wish

Tintoretto died in 1594 at age 75. He had asked to be buried in his parish church alongside his father-in-law, Marco Episopi (De Vescovi).

At the time, Marco—and later Tintoretto’s daughter Marietta (d. 1590) and son Domenico (d. 1635)—were buried along with him beneath the organ in the central nave.

Buried, Forgotten, Rediscovered

In the mid-19th century, during Austrian rule, the church underwent restoration to restore the church to it’s Gothic appearance. Floors were lifted, tombs were moved, and older burials were disturbed.

In 1866, four skeletons were discovered beneath the organ in the Vescovi tomb—identified as members of the Tintoretto family.

A New Chapel for the Family

By 1873, this chapel was prepared to house the remains. The remains of Tintoretto and his 2 children were moved here, though initially placed within the side wall and later in 1937 moved to a floor tomb. Marco Episopi’s tombstone, marked with his coat of arms, is now located in the nearby San Mauro Chapel.

The Family Around Him

Tintoretto’s daughter, Marietta—known as La Tintoretta—was a talented painter who trained in his workshop and closely matched his style. She was buried here after her early death at 30.

His son Domenico, also a painter, continued the family workshop and contributed works to this church.

Remembering the Artist

A terracotta bust of Tintoretto is mounted on the wall, marking the space as both a family tomb and a tribute to one of Venice’s greatest painters.

HISTORICAL OVERVIEW

DO I WANT SOME INFO ON HIS DAUGTER?

Tintoretto's Final Wish

From her early teens until her death in 1590, Robusti apprenticed and worked in her father’s workshop, absorbing many of the skills for which Tintoretto is most celebrated. Especially renowned for her portraits of aristocratic Venetians, she painted in the same flamboyant style that characterized her father’s work. As her talents were a close match to his, it has proved consistently difficult for experts to distinguish their hands.   Although both Holy Roman Emperor Maximillian II and King Philip II of Spain invited Robusti to be a painter in their courts, her father, reluctant to part with her, urged her not to accept the invitations. To ensure she would permanently remain in Venice, in 1578 Tintoretto arranged her marriage to a wealthy Venetian jeweler, Mario Augusti on the condition that she would not leave Tintoretto’s house until he passed away-a stipulation both she and her husband accepted. Sadly, Robusti died in childbirth at age 30, four years after her marriage and four years before her father’s death. Many historians speculate that Tintoretto’s death was caused by the deep depression to which he succumbed after his beloved daughter’s passing. Robusti is buried beside her father in the family parish,     is it worth a mention tintoretto’s son has paintings in this church too.

Buried, Forgotten, Rediscovered

In the mid-19th century, during Austrian rule, the church underwent restoration to restore the church to it’s Gothic appearance. Floors were lifted, tombs were moved, and older burials were disturbed.

In 1866, four skeletons were discovered beneath the organ in the Vescovi tomb—identified as members of the Tintoretto family.