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San Lazzaro degli Armeni Art Gallery

The Pinacoteca San Lazzaro degli Armeni contains most of the historical artifacts of the entire convent complex .

Here it is possible to admire part of the artifacts acquired or donated over the centuries by the Armenian Congregation, archaeological finds from all over the world, such as some ushapti (Egyptian statuettes of apotropaic value), ancient terracotta, ceramics and oriental art objects such as the Palla di Canton, a unique piece of ivory in which 14 concentric spheres were obtained, as well as some sculptures, including a plaster by Canova depicting the son of Napoleon Bonaparte.

The Pinacoteca San Lazzaro degli Armeni houses numerous works by Armenian painters such as Hovhannes Aivazovski (1817-1900) and Harutiun Ajemian (1904-1965).

On the ceiling you can admire the splendid painting by Tiepolo which depicts an allegory of Justice. In the room dedicated to Armenian art and history there are some important bronze finds, numerous ceramics, silverware mostly of liturgical use and other relics and objects of historical interest from the Urartu civilization, an ancient Armenian population.

In a small room of the museum is the Egyptian mummy of Nemen Khet Amen , dating back to the 7th century and considered one of the best preserved in the world, complete with sarcophagus. In the same room there is an Indian princely throne in teak wood decorated with ivory inlays . A small passage leads to the real "treasure" of the island: the library of the monastery of San Lazzaro degli Armeni , built in 1740 by Mechitar and considered today the most significant collection of Armenian manuscripts preserved in the West.

The book patrimony of the Armenian Mechitarist Congregation , made up of about 4000 manuscripts ranging from the sixth to the eighteenth century, most of which of Armenian origin, is in fact the result of a centuries-old process of collecting texts and acquiring collections. Among the preserved texts, in addition to the largest collection of Armenian periodicals and newspapers that exists, we point out the collection of archeology texts , donated by the Egyptian minister Artin Cerakian in the early twentieth century, including two original editions of the Description de l'Égypte , a work monumental that marks the birth of modern archeology promoted by Napoleon during the Egyptian campaign. Inside the monastery we also find other objects and works of art such as ceramics, silver and canvases by Armenian painters.

Timetable and tickets

Address

Isola di San Lazzaro
30126 Venice

Contacts

Discounts and prices’ reductions with the Artsupp Card

With the Artsupp Card you can get, for the first time, discounts and reduced entrance tickets for Italian museums .

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