About This Location
Chiesa di San Fantin stands on Campo San Fantin, a small square in the San Marco district. The church’s roots go back to the early Middle Ages, and over the centuries it was rebuilt and reshaped by prominent Venetian families. For a long time it was also known as Santa Maria delle Grazie di San Fantin, a name linked to devotion to the Virgin and a revered image brought from the East. Just steps away is Teatro La Fenice, Venice’s most famous opera house. Its name means “The Phoenix,” and the building has lived up to it. La Fenice opened in the 1790s, burned in 1836 and was rebuilt within a year, then was destroyed again by an arson fire on 29 January 1996. After a long reconstruction, the theatre reopened in the early 2000s and returned to the city’s cultural calendar. This corner of Venice shows two sides of the city in one glance: the steady presence of a parish church and the dramatic, public life of an opera house that keeps starting over. To continue, pass behind Chiesa di San Fantin and take the left turn along the next lane.