Scuola Grande di San Giovanni Evangelista Tours and Activities

The Scuola Grande di San Giovanni Evangelista is a confraternity of the church of San Giovanni Evangelista. This was an association of lay people dedicated to Christian beliefs and linked with the church. It was originally established in the church of San Aponal in 1261, making it the oldest of the six Great Schools of the former Republic of Venice, but it 1307 it was moved. The Scuola became famous in 1369 when the confraternity's Guardian Grande received the Relic of the Cross as a present. Many artists depicted this relic in paintings at the time.

During the 19th century, the Austrian government threatened to take the Scuola's beautiful marble floor. The Venetians organized to raise enough money to buy the building, saving it from being picked apart. They donated it to the world of art, and today it is an art museum where visitors can view its Hall of Columns, Monumental Staircase, the atrium, a variety of marble, and the works of art that decorate the walls.