UNLESS THE PAINTING is of the Last Supper Judas Iscariot is seldom included in any religious representations, usually being replaced by Saint Matthew.

Amongst the family of stone-cutters who created the statues on the exterior of the church of Madonna dell’Orto was one Paolo Delle Masegne, the son of Jacobello Delle Masegne who worked with his brother Pietro Paolo. The younger Paolo was a member of a sect who worshipped the devil.

It was Paolo who fashioned a statue of Judas Iscariot without either his father or uncle suspecting anything and placed it into one of the niches amongst the other apostles on the front of the church.

During the dedication of the church on Good Friday 1366 a passion play was put on with the part of one of the holy women played by a young 12 year old who came from the noble family of Contarin.

Isabella Contarin had made a miraculous recovery from a coma having developed typhoid and was regarded as something of a saint by many Venetians. She could foretell the future by looking at the aura that surrounded a person.

She spotted Paolo Della Masegne in the crowd watching the passion play and called out to him, ‘Know that you will be impotent against the justice of God and his people.’ The young man rushed towards Isabella but before he could get to her a deacon holding the holy water doused the stone-cutter with it causing him to fall to the ground in agony. The sky turned dark and a howling wind sprung up but the devil left his body.

Paolo Della Masegne survived but could remember nothing of the event although the statue stayed in its place. It is said that every Good Friday the statue of Judas leaves its niche and flies towards Jerusalem accompanied on his flight by the statues of Justice and Faith who tower over the figure of the Apostles from the roof of the church. 

The Madonna dell' Orto Church is widely regarded as one of the finest Gothic buildings in Venice. It was also the local church of the artist, Tintoretto, whose work can be seen inside including his dramatic Adoration of the Golden Calf and Last Judgement paintings either side of the altar.

The church has gone through many troubled times, being used as stabling under the Austrian rule in 1855. It suffered much damage in the great flood of 1966 although full restoration was completed between 1970 and 1980 by the Venice in Peril Fund.

Now there are fears that it may be closed again due to the difficulty in finding staff to work there. So PLEASE pay your €3 entry money here and help keep one of the great churches of Venice open to the public.