The Ca’ d’Oro, a Venetian palace overlooking the Grand Canal, houses the gallery of an important collector, Giorgio Franchetti, to whom we also owe the restoration of the palace. In addition to having left us a collection that includes works by leading artists such as Titian and Mantegna, we owe the preservation of the building itself to this patron. How to buy tickets for the Franchetti Gallery in Venice and visit the Ca’ d’Oro?

Franchetti Gallery in Venice: Tickets

Tickets to the Franchetti Gallery in Venice, also known as Ca’ d’Oro, will allow you to visit a unique art collection, put together by the taste and artistic knowledge of Giorgio Franchetti, whose ashes are still preserved in the palace courtyard.

The palace and gallery can be visited from Tuesday to Sunday from 8.15 am to 7.15 pm and on Mondays until 2 pm, but these hours may vary on public holidays, so it is always advisable to check when planning your visit. Inside there is a lift that makes the Ca’ d’Oro visitable also by wheelchair users or those with reduced mobility, but there is a step to enter and to access the loggias on the canal. The ticket, once purchased, cannot be rescheduled or cancelled.

If you approach the Ca’ d’Oro from the Grand Canal, imagine that once upon a time the architecture and decorations were even more sumptuous than we see them today, and the golden details of the façade (now disappeared, but from which the name is derived) were reflected in the water. The palace has undergone many changes over time, even radical ones, and despite the necessary and impressive restoration work carried out by Franchetti, it is very different from its origins.

Where the Ca’ d’Oro now stands, there used to be a Byzantine palace, purchased by a wealthy Venetian merchant, Mario Contarini, in the 15th century. It is to him that we actually owe the construction of the Ca’ d’Oro, built on his commission on the foundations of the original palace using materials salvaged from this demolition. And inside, what works does this 15th-century palace hold?

THE WORKS OF THE GIORGIO FRANCHETTI GALLERY

Those of Titian and Mantegna are certainly the best known of the Giorgio Franchetti Gallery’s works, but there are many other prominent artists who are part of this collection, which was born to become a museum.

In fact, when Giorgio Franchetti bought this palace at the end of the 19th century, he did so with the intention of finding a home for the works he collected rather than for himself, and there was already an intention in him to make his collection visitable. Among the most significant works on display are:

• “Judith” by Titian
• “Saint Sebastian” by Andrea Mantegna
• “Annunciation” by Vittore Carpaccio
• “Madonna of the Kiss” by Jacopo Sansovino

On the second floor, of particular importance are the fragments of frescoes housed in the ‘portego’, including those that Titian had painted for the Fondaco dei Tedeschi in the early 16th century.

Ca’ d’Oro and more: what to see in Venice

Venice, as it is often said, ‘is an open-air museum’ and opportunities to come across unique works of art are always just around the corner. And while the typical architecture is Venetian flamboyant Gothic, there is no lack of places of interest for those who also love modern and contemporary art, such as museums and galleries.

What are the must-sees in Venice? Starting from the most touristy spots, such as St Mark’s Square, to the smaller churches, choosing may not be easy. To make the most of your stay in Venice and see everything that interests you the most, there are various combination tickets, to suit everyone’s needs, with the added advantage of being cheaper than the sum of the individual entries.