VENICE.- Save Venice has launched a new conservation project in the Basilica di Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari: the majestic 15th-century Funerary Monument to Doge Francesco Foscari. Standing along the right wall of the presbytery, adjacent to Titian’s celebrated Assunta, the monument is an elaborate synthesis of stone reliefs, freestanding sculptures, and frescoed draperies.

When, on November 4, 1457, Francesco Foscari’s dead body was carried across Venice under a canopy of cloth gold, the whole city came out to see the spectacle. Foscari had been deposed just a few days before, on 22 October 1457, but his sudden illness and death had aroused wide public sympathy. On that cold, Winter morning, the new doge Pasquale Malipiero with the Signoria, the clergy, the scuole grandi, the nobles, and the citizens of Venice, lined up to escort Foscari on his last journey to the Basilica of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari. After the funeral oration by historian Bernardo Giustinian, the remains were inhumed in the church. The tomb, which was going to occupy the right-hand wall of the Frari’s chancel, would be erected by Francesco Foscari’s nephew Nicolò in the following years, probably in the late 1450s.

Over five centuries later, the monument to Francesco Foscari still stands against the right wall of the Frari’s presbytery, surrounded by a frescoed wall hanging decorated with the family arms. In the middle of the wall, under a tent of honor held apart by two warriors, the recumbent statue of Doge Foscari rests on a sarcophagus. Four female personifications of the cardinal virtues (Fortitude, Temperance, Prudence, and Justice) stand at the corners of the sarcophagus, whereas its front bears half-length reliefs of the theological virtues (Charity, Faith, and Hope). It has been suggested that the virtues—similar to those that decorate the Porta della Carta in Palazzo Ducale—celebrate Foscari’s worldly achievements. The bas-reliefs on the sarcophagus’ sides—Foscari’s patron, Saint Francis (left), and Venice’s patron, Saint Mark (right)—serve as the doge’s holy intercessors with God. Finally, above the entablature of the tomb, the Archangel Gabriel appears to the Virgin Mary, the two sculptures reenacting the Conception of Christ. Between them, the Risen Christ emerges from a mystic mandorla, the point of encounter between the earthly and the divine realm.

The Risen Christ deserves special attention. Scholars have long misinterpreted its iconography as Christ being accompanied by the soul of Foscari in the form of a child. However, close examination of the sculpture has not only demonstrated that the child is a blessing winged putto, but that originally there was a second angel on the other side of Christ. Interestingly, a drawing in the Staatliche Museen, Berlin, shows the sculptural group as it originally looked, and some scholars even consider it to be preparatory for the Foscari tomb. The iconography of the Risen Christ was deeply associated with the doge as it was represented in all Venetian ducats, from the coinage of the earliest gold ducat under doge Giovanni Dandolo (1284), until the reign of Gerolamo Priuli in the mid-16th century. As in the Venetian ducats, and also in the Foscari tomb Christ stands within a mandorla, his right hand raised in blessing while he holds the Book of Judgement, thus terminating the cycle of redemption initiated by the Annunciation.

The attribution of the tomb is still uncertain and much debated. An 18th-century engraving of the monument attributes it to Antonio and Paolo Bregno. However, over time art historians have also put forward the names of Bartolomeo Bon, Antonio Rizzo, and, more recently, Niccolò di Giovanni Fiorentino. As the debate stands, the case in favor of the latter seems to be more compelling. Originally from Florence, Niccolò worked in Donatello’s Paduan shop in the early 1450s. Before moving to Trogir, Dalmatia, in 1467, Niccolò stayed in Venice where he ran a workshop that worked on the Arco Foscari and in the churches of Madonna dell’Orto, Sant’Andrea della Certosa, Sant’Elena, and Santa Maria del Giglio. Furthermore, a comparison with Niccolò’s Dalmatian production has convincingly demonstrated that he indeed made the funerary tomb to doge Francesco Foscari. Considering the quality of his work and the prestigious character of his commissions, it can be argued that the author of the Foscari tomb was among the most important 15th-century sculptors in Venice.

Fresco Decoration

The wall frescoes have undergone extensive reworking and patching over the centuries and are now obscured by a thick layer of surface grime and dust deposits. Various conservation issues are evident, such as plaster detachments and lifts caused by rising damp, salt deposits, and rainwater infiltration. The deterioration also extends to the lower part of the wall, affecting both decorated and undecorated plaster. The latter is completely detached from the wall surface, highlighting the urgent need for intervention to address the situation.

Stone Monument

The intricately decorated monument, likely made of Istrian Stone, is currently obscured by thick layers of non-original residues. In addition to dirt and grime, the widespread and consistent greyed appearance of the monument suggests that a surface protectant, mostly likely wax, was extensively applied in a previous intervention. Over time this has yellowed, and the waxy buildup is also obscuring the delicate details of the carved and painted surfaces. These non-original layers will be thinned and removed, revealing the natural color of the stone beneath.

The monument is embellished with gilding and polychrome details using pigments including azurite and white led, and this painted layer is suffering from several condition issues including lifting, flaking, and detaching, which will be carefully stabilized and cleaned during treatment.