Basilica di Santi Maria e Donato
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The Basilica di Santa Maria e Donato ( German Basilica of Saints Maria and Donatus ) is a parish church in Murano , Venice . The Church in the Patriarchate of Venice is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Dedicated to Donatus of Arezzo . It bears the title of a minor basilica and is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Venice and its lagoon. It is known for its Byzantine mosaic pavement from the twelfth century and shows the relics of Donatus of Evorea .
history
The church is one of the oldest in the Venetian lagoon. A first church is believed to have existed here as early as the 7th century, and another in the 9th century. According to tradition, the foundation of the church under the original name S. Mariae plebis Murianensis is traced back to a vow made by Otto I after he was saved from a storm on the Adriatic. The existence of a church is documented for the year 999. The current church with its free-standing, square campanile was completed after a date in the Maosaic floor in 1140. The basilica was the cathedral of the bishops of Torcello and Murano after 1692 and was heavily rebuilt under Bishop Marco Guistinian.
architecture
The three-aisled column basilica has six bays and a slightly protruding transept. The church and the bell tower are made of dark red, unplastered bricks. The actual entrance side of the basilica faces west. The choir area on the east side of this church, which is located directly on the sea, was chosen as the viewing side for the arriving guests and designed in a very representative manner. A two-story arch construction with striking white columns was erected. The arcade structure of the ground floor is repeated on the first floor in the surrounding gallery. Below the row of arcades there are two zigzag friezes in various types of marble. The west side, on the other hand, is only divided in the middle by four pilaster strips.
During the renovation from 1695, larger thermal bath windows were broken into in the upper storey instead of the original arched windows. The church received Baroque altars and a general Baroque redesign, which was reversed during the restoration from 1858.
Furnishing
The interior of the basilica is famous for its colorful, Byzantine mosaic floor with elaborate floral motifs from 1140. This was removed during a restoration from 1973 to 1979 and reapplied after adding an insulating layer of concrete.
From the original interior, in the semi-dome of the apse area, based on the Byzantine model, just like in Torcello, the lonely figure of Mary appears on a golden mosaic background.
The relics of St. Donatus of Evorea are in a marble sarcophagus under a reclining sculpture of the bishop. They were probably brought to Venice in 1125. Behind the altar there are four bones in hanging wires, consisting of ribs more than a meter long. According to legend, these bones come from the dragon that St. Donatus slain in Greece. It is probably whale bones.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Donatus of Arezzo
- ^ Basilica di Ss. Maria Assunta, Donato e Cipriano on gcatholic.org
- ↑ a b SS. Maria e Donato (Murano)
- ↑ Illustration and description of the bones ( Memento of the original from August 8, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. on one Provaten page
Coordinates: 45 ° 27 '26.8 " N , 12 ° 21' 25.9" E