The church of Sant'Anna is a religious building in the city of Venice, located in the Castello district, overlooking the foundations of the same name.
The presence of small Augustinian communities in the area led to the
need to build new monasteries, and in 1240, thanks to the bequests of a
certain Andrea, Giacomo da Fano was commissioned to purchase a suitable
territory. In 1242 in the area between the Rio di Castello and the
Canale di San Pietro, with the concession of Bishop Pietro Pino, a
convent dedicated to Sant'Anna and Santa Caterina was erected.
In
the thirteenth century the convent passed to the Benedictine nuns, but
during the second French occupation (1806-1814), as a result of the
decree of 28 July 1806, the church of Sant'Anna was suppressed and the
31 nuns were aggregated to the sisters of Saint Lawrence.
Systematically stripped of all sacred furnishings, in 1817 the five
altars together with the floor were moved to the church of San Biasio ai
Forni, which in the meantime had been reopened for worship, after having
suffered a long period of abandonment.
By decree of April 25,
1810, the convent became a Marine College. After the annexation to the
Kingdom of Italy, in 1867 it was transformed into a hospital of the
Regia Marina and the church hall was divided into two floors by an
attic.
The original building had a basilica plan, with three naves and a
Gothic layout, linked to the Venetian-Byzantine style, initially covered
by a flat ceiling which has now been lost.
Since the ancient
church was in ruinous conditions, its complete rebuilding began on 4
October 1634 based on a project by Francesco Contini. The works were
completed in 1659 and the consecration with the sole title of Sant'Anna
was officiated by the patriarch of Venice Gianfrancesco Morosini. The
new church, except for the orientation which remained unchanged, had
however radically changed its appearance, now presenting itself with a
single hall. On the internal sides there are Corinthian columns, which
support the entablature.
An inscription recalls the sacrifice of
marangoni, caulkers, oarsmen and sawyers, workers of the Venice Arsenal.
The church is deconsecrated.