Santa Maria della Grazia

Santa Maria della Grazia
Santa Maria della Grazia in Venice as seen from La Giudecca
Santa Maria della Grazia is located in Venetian Lagoon
Santa Maria della Grazia
Santa Maria della Grazia
Geography
Coordinates45°25′09″N 12°20′22″E / 45.4192°N 12.3394°E / 45.4192; 12.3394
Adjacent toVenetian Lagoon
Administration
RegionVeneto
ProvinceProvince of Venice

Santa Maria della Grazia or La Grazia is an artificial island of the Venetian lagoon, northern Italy, which lies between the Giudecca and San Clemente.

In 2016 the island was sold to a private company from Treviso, Giesse Investimenti s.r.l., to host a new resort.

History

Santa Maria della Grazia rose during the Middle Ages in the place where Venice’s rubble was discarded. The island takes its name from a supposedly miraculous Madonna which was on display in its former church. In 1264 there was a home for pilgrims to the Holy Land; later it was transformed into a convent. During the Napoleonic period the convent was suppressed and changed to a powder-magazine, which in 1849 exploded destroying both the ex-convent and the church.

The island was the site of an infectious diseases hospital until the end of the twentieth century.

References

  • Guida d’Italia del Touring Club Italiano, Venice