Restored in 2007 with funding from Baroness Mariuccia Zerilli-Marimò.

This Crucifix is generally considered a rare example of arte popolare, or folk art, crafted for devotional purposes by the highly skilled woodworkers of the Arsenale shipyard. This dramatic figure of Christ is made from various wood remnants, possibly castoffs from the shipyard. The position of the arms and the sharp angle at which Christ’s head falls suggest that the figure was designed to be seen from below — possibly even on a ship’s bow — as opposed to its current installation.

According to local tradition, the Venetians carried this Crucifix on a galley in the naval battle of Lepanto (1571), when the Venetians joined forces with the Papacy and coalitions from Spain and Genoa to defeat the Ottoman forces, gaining temporary control of the Mediterranean.

The sculpture is thought to have come to the church of San Martino in the nineteenth century. It may have once belonged to one of the numerous devotional guilds dedicated to Arsenale occupations such as the calafati (tar workers) or marangoni (woodworkers).

The work was restored by conservator Mauro Vita, with the guidance of project director Emanuela Zucchetta of the Superintendency of Monuments of Venice.

For select projects, conservation dossiers in Italian containing limited textual and photographic documentation may be available for consultation by appointment at the Venice office of Save Venice and the Rosand Library & Study Center. For inquiries, please contact us at venice@savevenice.org.

Unidentified artist
Lepanto Crucifix
Fifteenth century (?), wood