Cannaregio & Jewish Heritage Experience with a Local-

Cannaregio

The sestiere of Cannaregio, second only to Castello as an extension and population, probably takes its name from the fact that in ancient times it stood on a reed marsh.

It is not uncommon for the most careful and respectful tourist to witness the few Venetian traditions that survived modernity and the onslaught of tourists.

In fact in Cannaregio you can still meet many bacari, the typical local frequented by the residents, or assist the children and kids engaged in typical games, or even see someone who practices the Voga Veneta. There are many Rowing Associations here, many of which are based in a facility near Campo Sant'Alvise, with equipment for hauling boats in the Lagoon, and can practice practitioners off the canals, where the waters are calmer. and less intrusive motor boat traffic.

Little by little, despite alternating moments of “permission” and “prohibition”, the number and importance of Jews in Venice grew considerably, so much that on March 29th 1516 the Republic found it necessary to enact a decree to organize their presence.The Republic obliged the Jews to live in an area of the city where the foundries, known in Venetian as “geti”, had been situated in ancient times, to wear a sign of identification and to manage the city’s pawnshops at rates estabilished by the Serenissima. Many other onerous regulations were also included, in exchange for which the Community was granted the freedom to practice its faith and protection in the case of war.

Tintoretto's house is located in Venice in the Cannaregio district. Tintoretto's house is located along the Fondamenta dei Mori, not far from the Campo dei Mori. Jacopo Robusti, known as Tintoretto, since his father was a dyer of fabrics, lived in this house during his life (Venice, 1519-1594), apart from the period in which he went to the court of the Gonzagas of Mantua, between 1590 and 1593. The house of Tintoretto was built during the fifteenth century in Gothic style. The building is tall and narrow and has a beautiful three-light window on the first noble floor. There are two other elements that distinguish the façade of Tintoretto's house: a plaque that reminds posterity of the house of the great Venetian painter, and a small marble statue, representing Hercules with a club, which tradition has it been placed on building by Tintoretto himself. A statue of an Arab is placed a few meters to the left of the entrance door of the house of Tintoretto. It completes the series of four figures that begins in Campo dei Mori. There are many churches in Venice and other buildings in the city that host paintings by Tintoretto. Other masterpieces of the famous Venetian painter are present in the Scuola Grande di San Rocco (where he painted for 25 years, between 1563 and 1588) and in the Gallerie dell'Accademia. Without forgetting his enormous work "Il Paradiso" (considered by some to be the largest canvas in the world, with its 170 square meters of surface), which still adorns the entrance wall of the Sala del Maggior Consiglio in Palazzo Ducale. Tintoretto also frescoed some facades of Venetian palaces, but any trace of those paintings has now virtually disappeared. Tintoretto was buried not far from his birthplace. Its remains are in fact kept inside the Church of the Madonna dell'Orto