Church of San Geminiano

About

San Geminiano was a Roman Catholic church located in Piazza San Marco in Venice, Italy, dedicated to Saint Geminianus. It is believed to have been founded by the Byzantines in the 6th century AD and it was destroyed and rebuilt several times over subsequent centuries. The last reconstruction began in 1505 to designs of the architect Cristoforo da Legname, and it was completed by Jacopo Sansovino in 1557. This church was a significant example of Venetian Renaissance architecture, and it was well-known for being ornate and richly decorated. The building was demolished in 1807 in order to make way for the Napoleonic wing of the Procuratie, and many of the artworks it contained were distributed among other churches and museums.

History: According to tradition, the first church of Saint Geminianus in Venice was established in around 554 to 564 AD by the Byzantine general Narses. It is said to have been built in order to thank the Venetians for their assistance during a siege of Ravenna. It is unclear if this building was destroyed by fire in 976, and the church is first documented with certainty in 1023. It might have been destroyed during a series of fires and earthquakes in 1106....