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“Il Tempio”, which
is dedicated to the
Holy Trinity. Canova
laid the first stone
of the building,
which is dedicated
to the Holy Trinity,
in 1819. Canova
spent his own money
building the temple
and only asked the
local people to
provide basic
materials such as
lime, stone and
sand. In return, the
people worked days,
nights and holidays
to complete the
structure. The bone
white temple, with
its graceful cupola
and portico, can be
seen from a great
distance from
Possagno and
visually dominates
the town itself. |
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Looking at the
temple building, one
finds three sources
of inspiration: the
Doric columns are
evocative of the
Parthenon in Athens,
the main body
structure recalls
the Parthenon in
Rome and the raised
apse is reminiscent
of ancient Christian
basilicas. These
three parts
symbolize the three
ages of classical
history: Greek,
Latin and Christian. |
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| Canova's Temple |
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| Asolo. (TV) Click here for Map |
| Tel. +39 0423 529046 email: iat.asolo@provincia.treviso.it |
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| Opening times: |
| 9.00 AM - 12.00 PM and 2.00 PM - 5.00 PM (Winter) |
| 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM (summer) |
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| Closed: Mondays and during church services. |
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Il Tempio houses
many precious works
of art, among which
the altarpiece above
the altar of S.
Francesco di Paola,
by Luca Giordano and
the painting of
Jesus in the Garden
of Olives by Palma
il Giovane. Various
examples of metope
(square space
between the
triglyphs of the
Doric-style frieze)
all by Canova, who
depicted scenes
taken from the Old
Testaments. The
large niche to the
right just inside
the doors is home to
a bronze Pieta by
Bartolomeo Ferrari
working from a model
by Canova. On the
main altar is a
painting of the
Deposition which
Canova executed
between 1798-99 for
the old parish
church. It was moved
to the temple in
1830. |
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At the top of the
steps and from the
portico one can look
out to the
mountainous reaches
and valleys of the
Grappa range which
rise toward the
Alps. The hills are
covered in chestnut
trees and deciduous
trees of many other
kinds including
acacia, beech, ash,
elm and hazel.
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At the base of the
temple, is the Museo
Canoviano, also
known as the
Gipsoteca, which
presents a connected
series of exhibition
halls containing the
works of Canova from
different periods.
The 19th century
wing is an
architectural marvel
conceived by the
Venetian architect
Francesco Lazzari
and completed in
1836. The wing,
flooded by natural
light from
skylights, has a
high and solemn
barrel vault ceiling
divided into 3
sections. Contained
within this section
are exposed gesso
models of a few
funeral monuments
and statues, among
which the enormous
Theseus, conqueror
of the Centaur. One
also finds statues
of Hercules, Lichas,
Venus and Adonis,
and famous Paolina
Bonaparte at rest. |
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Region |
Veneto |
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Province |
Belluno. |
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Elevation |
325 m |
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Population |
20,560 |
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Demonym |
Feltrini |
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Time |
CET(UTC+1) |
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Postal |
32032 |
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Dialing |
0439 |
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Patron |
St.
Victor |
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