Santa Croce is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

church located on Corso Vittorio Emanuele 178 in

Padua Padua ( ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Veneto, northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Padua. The city lies on the banks of the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice and southeast of Vicenza, and has a population of 20 ...

Veneto Veneto, officially the Region of Veneto, is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the Northeast Italy, north-east of the country. It is the fourth most populous region in Italy, with a population of 4,851,851 as of 2025. Venice is t ...

region,

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

History

The church arose adjacent to the oratory of Sant Croce or ''Sala del Redentore''. Documents from 1181 state a chapel at the site, adjacent to a

leprosarium A leper colony, also known by #Names, many other names, is an isolated community for the quarantining and treatment of lepers, people suffering from leprosy. ''Mycobacterium leprae, M. leprae'', the bacterium responsible for leprosy, is believ ...

, was dedicated to the Holy Cross. The church became a parish in 1308. In 1606, the parish came under the rule of the

Somaschi Fathers The Somaschi Fathers, also known as the Somascans and officially as the Order of Clerics Regular of Somasca (), are a Catholic Church, Catholic order of Cleric regular, Clerics Regular of Pontifical Right for men. It was founded in Italy in th ...

, who established a school at this site. The commission to build the present

Rococo Rococo, less commonly Roccoco ( , ; or ), also known as Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and dramatic style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpte ...

style church was given to a lay brother of the order, Francesco Vecelli (1695–1759). Construction began in 1737 and was completed in 1749. Under Napoleonic rule, the Somaschi were expelled and the church came under control of secular clergy. The belltower was built in 1907.

Architecture and Decoration

The façade was designed to be a monument at the end of the Borgo Santa Croce, running from the

Prato della Valle Prato della Valle (''Prà de ła Vałe'' in Venetian) is a 90,000-square-meter elliptical square in Padua, Italy. It is the second largest square in Italy and one of the largest in Europe. Today, the square is a large space with a green isl ...

to the outer wall. It has a pediment supported by pilasters and half-columns of

Corinthian order The Corinthian order (, ''Korinthiakós rythmós''; ) is the last developed and most ornate of the three principal classical orders of Ancient Greek architecture and Ancient Roman architecture, Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric or ...

. Two circular turrets lighten the architecture. The main door has a curved tympanum under the inscription that commemorates the consecration of the church. The late-

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

and early Neoclassical design was by the architect Girolamo Frigimelica Roberti of Padua. The bell tower on the side of the twentieth-century church is built on the area of the cemetery. The well-lit nave features a rich decoration on which is placed a series of openings in fenestrated fake balcony, probably as choirs. The presbytery with semicircular apse is decorated with impressive semi-columns. The ceiling of the church is decorated with coffers, stucco and gilding. The frescoes have been attributed to

Gualtieri Gualtieri (Emilian dialects, Mantovano: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Reggio Emilia, in the Italy, Italian region of Emilia-Romagna, located about northwest of Bologna and about north of Reggio Emilia on the right bank o ...

, Girolamo dal Santo,

Domenico Campagnola Domenico Campagnola (c. 1500–1564) was an Italian painter and printmaker in engraving and woodcut of the Venetian Renaissance, but whose most influential works were his drawings of landscapes. Life and work Born probably in Venice, he w ...

, and Stefano Dall' Arzere. The main altar has two angels sculpted by

Antonio Bonazza Antonio Bonazza (23 December 1698 – 12 January 1763) was an Italian sculptor of the Rococo. He is considered one the greatest and most original Venetian sculptors of the 18th century; his activity was widespread, and his art distinguished by its ...

(1698–1763) surmounted by a canopy. The apse has a wooden choir. The church has four altarpieces by Giovanni Battista Mariotti (1690–1748), including depicting the founder of the Somaschi order ''San Girolamo Miani praying in a grotto''. Another fresco depicting the ''Holy Heart of Jesus'' was painted by

Giovanni Dandolo Giovanni Dandolo was the 48th Doge of Venice, elected late in his life on 31 March 1280. He died on 2 November 1289. During his reign, the first Venetian gold ducat was introduced into circulation. Family Dandolo came from a prominent Venetian ...

. Through a door on the right, one can enter the ''Cappella della Madonna della Neve'' (Chapel of the Madonna of the Snows) and the ''Sala del Redentore'' or Oratory of the Confraternity of the Redeemer. The oratory dates to the 15th century and was the home of the former Confraternity of the ''Corpo di Cristo di Santa Croce'' established at the end of the 15th century. The confraternity was involved in tending to the poor and burying the impoverished. The frescoes of the oratory have been restored. Cleric Somascan entrusted the large ceiling fresco, depicting the ''Exaltation of the Cross'', and the oval dome of the presbytery to the Venetian Nicolo Baldassini. The paintings at side altars and walls of the apse were commissioned Giambattista Mariotti. The location of the paintings was altered with the arrival of the early 800 Salus Populi Patavini, venerated seventeenth-century wooden statue of Our Lady of Health, coming from the oratory and linked to the plague that struck the city in the seventeenth century. On the first altar to the right from the entrance is a painting of the Mariotti with St. John Nepomuk, St. Francis of Paola and Antonio. The wooden choir is below ''Adoration of the True Cross by St Helena'' was painted by

. On the first altar on the left from the entrance there is the painting of

St. Jerome Jerome (; ; ; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was an early Christian priest, confessor, theologian, translator, and historian; he is commonly known as Saint Jerome. He is best known for his translation of the Bible ...

by Emiliani. The one story building to the right of the entrance of this church, with a marble portal and plaque above, is the ''Oratorio del Redentore'' or ''Scuola del Santissimo Sacramento di Santa Croce''. The interior was frescoed circa 1537 with biblical scenes; the works have been attributed to Girolamo Dal Santo,

, Stefano Dall'Arzere, and others. The confraternity was suppressed in the 19th century. The works extant include a ''Last supper''; a ''Prayer at Gesthemane'', a ''Kiss of Judas'', ''Christ before Caiphas'', ''Christ before Pilate''; ''Christ made to wear crown with thorns'', ''Christ carries the Cross'', ''Christ kneels before Cross'', ''Crucifixion'', ''Deposition'', and ''Burial of Christ'', and ''Sacrifice of Isaac'', portraits of the patrons of the city: Saints Giustina, Prosdocimo, Antonio, and Daniele.Lega Ambiente Padova
website.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Croce Padua Roman Catholic churches completed in 1749 18th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Roman Catholic churches in Padua Baroque architecture in Veneto