San Lazzaro degli Armeni

St. Lazarus of the Armenians is a small island in the lagoon of Venice, completely occupied by a Monastery, home of the Mekhitaristi order, one of the first centers in the world of Armenian culture. The Islet, lying at some distance from the city o f Vencie, was used as a hospital, getting its name from San Beggar Lazarus, the patron saint of lepers. In 1716, the Armenian monk Mechitar went to visit the Island, now abandoned, in order not only to restore the old buildings, even building new ones and recover the surrounding land to turn them into the garden. In 1740, the monks were able to give to the study and the Island became a center of culture and science, intended to keep alive the language, literature, traditions and customs of the Armenian people. In 1789 it was created the first small typography; between 1823-25, a new typography and a library which, to date, contains about 170.000 volumes of manuscripts, as well as precious Arab, Indian and Egyptian artifacts, including Nehmeket Mummy. The current Church was built on an old existing twelfth century building. The roof is vaulted, supported by stone pillars with red marble columns. The stained glass windows are modern. At the foot of the main altar he is buried the founder and first abbot, Mechitar.

Info:

The Monastery is freely open daily from 3:25 pm.