Palazzo Contarini in San Beneto is a palace in Venice located in the San Marco district and overlooking the Rio di San Luca, not far from the confluence with the Grand Canal, next to the side facade of Palazzo Corner Contarini dei Cavalli and opposite the side facade of Palazzo Grimani.
Certainly built in place of a Gothic building and completed by 1566,
its author is unknown: it has been hypothesized that its creator was
Sante Lombardo, who died in the year of its completion. It was
restructured in two phases: in the 17th century it was enriched with a
courtyard and a monumental staircase, while the internal frescoes and
stuccos date back to the 18th century, which have now partially
disappeared.
The Corner, Contarini, Mocenigo and Giovanelli
families lived in this building. In particular, the Mocenigos became its
owners by inheritance in 1833. It then became the headquarters of the
Compagnia delle Acque.
The style of this building indicates the giving way of the Lombard
style to the tastes introduced with the work of Sebastiano Serlio.
Thanks to the many decorations, John Ruskin identifies this building as
an example of the style that distinguishes the transition between the
primitive and mature forms of the Renaissance.
The facade is in
fact characterized by the predominance of sixteenth-century taste,
characterized by a series of central serliane and by decorative friezes
on the noble floor level. These stylistic elements are flanked by other
more archaic ones, such as the decoration of the facade, used as a
status symbol, and the shape of the arches that make up the mullioned
window on the second noble floor. The entire facade is also
characterized by the presence of various types of marble, cartouches,
paterae and lozenges. Even the attention to the lower part of the facade
is singular, where the openings are neatly arranged on two levels,
creating a particular architectural rhythm.
It has a singular
L-shaped plan, due to the integration between the previous buildings,
thanks to which the rooms overlook two internal courtyards. As for the
interiors, the top floor casino is decorated with stuccos by Carpoforo
Mazzetti Tencalla. The frescoes date back to the marriage between Giulio
Contarini and Elena Morosini, celebrated in 1748: they are the work of
Francesco Fontebasso and Gaspare Diziani.