Ca Rezzonico

Ca Rezzonico in the Dorsoduro area is one of the grandest palaces on the Grand Canal, built partly in the seventeenth and partly in the eighteenth century. Since 1934 it has belonged to Venice and houses the "Museo del Settecento Veneziano" (Museum of Eighteenth Century Venice). Beautiful rooms, some of them decorated with frescoes by Tiepolo, collections of furniture and works of art from the eighteenth century.

Robert Browning

Ca Rezzonico is believed to have been the last home of the poet Robert Browning. In 1888, his son Pen Barrett Browning bought the palazzo, and Browning spent the last months of his life in a mezzanine apartment next to the courtyard. The poet died here on December 12, 1889, in this room where the Mestrovic collection is now located. Visitors can only access the two rooms used for the exhibition. Outside you can see a stone plaque on the wall of the building that remembers the poet Roberto Browning and quotes his lines: “Open my heart and you will see Italy”

Purchase of a palace

In 1712, the Ca Rezzonico Palace was purchased from the Rezzonico family of Genoa, who completed the construction of the house and duly decorated it. They were known for throwing huge parties. The house is decorated with paintings, frescoes and baroque furniture, and the most remarkable room is the Ballroom. Beginning in 1810, Ca Rezzonico changed hands several times and was eventually purchased by the state.

Visit the museum

The main entrance to Ca Rezzonico is marked by an imposing gate, richly decorated with architectural details and a basin containing a large goldfish. On one side there is a garden with benches, which you can enter for free. The ground floor courtyard and entrance hall lead to the entrance to the water of the Grand Canal. An antique gondola with a closed cabin is on display inside. The rooms are furnished with furniture and art objects from the museum's collection, some of which are largely Baroque.

Painting gallery

The second floor is used to display more art, including Canaletto's beautiful Venetian vignettes by Pietro Longhi and two large Venetian scenes by Francesco Guardi, one of nuns being visited by their families and the other of players in the Ridotto. However, the most striking exhibit on this floor of Ca Rezzonico is a series of small rooms created to display frescoes taken from the Tiepolo family villa on the mainland, Villa Zianigo.