San Francesco del Deserto is an island in the Venetian Lagoon in Véneto, Italy, with a surface of some 4 ha. It is located between
Sant'Erasmo
Sant'Erasmo is an island in the Venetian Lagoon lying north-east of the Lido island and east of Venice, Italy.
History
The island was a port attached to Murano in the 8th century, but is now known for market gardening. Ruined fortificatio ...
and
Burano
Burano is an island in the Venetian Lagoon, northern Italy, near Torcello at the northern end of the lagoon, known for its lace work and brightly coloured homes. The primary economy is tourism.
Geography
Burano is from Venice, a 45-minute t ...
. It houses a
Franciscan
, image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg
, image_size = 200px
, caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans
, abbreviation = OFM
, predecessor =
, ...
monastery.
History
The island was frequented since
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
times. In 1220, St. Francis landed here at his return from the Holy Land during the
Fifth Crusade
The Fifth Crusade (1217–1221) was a campaign in a series of Crusades by Western Europeans to reacquire Jerusalem and the rest of the Holy Land by first conquering Egypt, ruled by the powerful Ayyubid sultanate, led by Al-Adil I, al-Adil, brothe ...
, and founded a hermitage here. After his death, the island was given to the Minorites by the Venetian patrician Jacopo Michiel, a relative of the
patriarch of Grado
This is a list of the Patriarchs of Grado (north-eastern Italy). ''
Angelo Barozzi
Angelo Barozzi o Barocci (...-1237) was a Roman Catholic prelate. He was first priest of San Giovanni Elemosinario, then chaplain of St Mark's Basilica and ducal Chancellor. In August 1207 he was appointed patriarch of Grado.
Notes
Sources
...
, to found a monastery.
During the Austrian rule of Venice, the island, abandoned due to its unhealthy characteristics, was used as a powder depot. In 1858 it was donated to the diocese of Venice, who allowed the friars to refound a monastery here.