This is a preview of the content in our Venice Art & Culture app. Get the app to:
- Read offline
- Remove ads
- Access all content
- Use the in-app Map to find sites, and add custom locations (your hotel...)
- Build a list of your own favourites
- Search the contents with full-text search functionality
- ... and more!
Santa Chiara
A museum shop of glass
Originally known as San Nicolo della Torre, this church and convent on Murano underwent several changes over the centuries: initially inhabited by Augustinian monks, then by Benedictine nuns who were expelled for bad behaviour, finally by the sisters of St Clare, one of whom was Casanova's lover, the frisky 'MM'.
The church was suppressed in 1826, and eventually converted into a glass factory before it was abandoned in the 1970s. It was falling into ruin, but recently bought and restored to create a unique interactive glass-blowing museum, 'The Glass Cathedral' with a range of events, including glass blowing parties and masquerade balls.
Text © Dana Facaros & Michael Pauls
Image by Santachiaramurano, Creative Commons License