Restored in 1980 with Save Venice general funds.

The three Theological Virtues in this painting by Jacopo Marieschi are identified by their traditional attributes: Faith, the largest and highest of the personifications, is shown holding the chalice of the Eucharist and the Holy Cross; Charity is shown as a mother of multiple children; and Hope holds an anchor that indicates her steadfastness. This canvas serves as a pendant to Francesco Maggiotto’s Penitence and Meditation, which hangs across from it in the chapel of the Giustinian dei Vescovi family in San Francesco della Vigna.

Jacopo Marieschi was a pupil of Gaspare Diziani; of his relatively few recorded paintings to survive, several others are still conserved in situ at San Giovanni in Bragora, Santa Maria del Giglio, and the Scuola Grande di San Giovanni Evangelista.

The work was restored by conservators Serafino and Ferruccio Volpin, with the guidance of project director Sandro Sponza of the Superintendency of Fine Arts 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.

Jacopo Marieschi (1711–1794)
The Theological Virtues (Faith, Hope, and Charity)
c. 1785, oil on canvas
135 x 102 cm