San Lazzaro degli Armeni (, "Saint Lazarus of the Armenians"; sometimes called Saint Lazarus Island in English; ) is a small island in the Venetian Lagoon which has been home to the monastery of the Mekhitarists, an Armenian Catholic congregation, since 1717. It is one of the two primary centers of the congregation, along with the monastery in Vienna.
The islet lies to the southeast of Venice proper and west of the Lido and covers an area of . Settled in the 9th century, it was a leper colony during the Middle Ages, but fell into disuse by the early 18th century. In 1717 San Lazzaro was ceded by the Republic of Venice to Mkhitar Sebastatsi, an Armenian Catholic monk, who established a monastery with his followers. It has since been the headquarters of the Mekhitarists and, as such, one of the world's prominent centers of Armenian culture and Armenian studies. Numerous important publications, such as the first complete dictionary of the Armenian language (1749–69) and the first modern history of Armenia (1781–86), were made in the island by the monks which made it an early major center of Armenian printing.
San Lazzaro has been enlarged nearly four times from its original size through land reclamation. It was recognized as an academy by Napoleon in 1810 when nearly all monasteries of Venice were abolished. A significant episode in its history is Lord Byron's visit in 1816–17. The island is one of the best known historic sites of the Armenian diaspora. The monastery has a large collection of books, journals, artifacts, and the third largest collection of Armenian manuscripts (more than 3,000). Over the centuries, dozens of artists, writers, political and religious leaders have visited the island. It has since become a tourist destination.
Overview
San Lazzaro lies to the southeast of Venice proper and west of the Lido. The rectangular-shaped islet covers an area of .
The island is accessible by a vaporetto from the San Zaccaria station with guided tours available in multiple languages with prior reservations only. Some 40,000 people visit the island annually, with Italians making up the majority of visitors. Sylvia Sprigge noted in 1961 that it is the only island in the Venetian Lagoon to be "completely equipped, down to the last detail, for tourists’ visits."
Population The number of monks, students, and other residents at San Lazzaro has fluctuated throughout history. Twelve monks led by Mkhitar Sebastatsi arrived in Venice in 1715. A century later, in 1816, when Byron visited the island, there were some 70 Mekhitarists in San Lazzaro. Their number has been smaller thereafter. By the early 1840s, the island housed 50 monks and students, and 24 by 1880. By 1960, some 20 resident monks were reported. A Los Angeles Times writer noted in 1998 that San Lazzaro is still a "monastic hub of activity," although at the time the monastery housed only 10 seminarians and 10 fathers. Eight monks resided in 2004, while as of 2015, twelve vardapets (educated monks) and five novices reside in San Lazzaro.
History
Middle Ages The recorded history of the island begins in the 9th century. In 810, the Republic of Venice allocated the island to the abbot of the Benedictine Monastery of St. Ilario of Fusina. Leone Paolini, a local nobleman, obtained the island as a gift from the Abbot Uberto di Sant'Ilario and built a church, initially dedicated to Pope Leo I. It soon became an asylum for those infected with leprosy. In the 12th century, leprosy had appeared in Venice as a result of trade with the East. Paolini transferred the simple hospital of San Trovaso to the island. Thus, a leper colony was established at the island, which was chosen for that purpose due to its relative distance from the principal islands forming the city of Venice. It received its name from St. Lazarus, the patron saint of lepers. The church of San Lazzaro was founded in 1348, which is attested by an inscription in Gothic script. In the same year, the hospital was renovated and its ownership transferred from the Benedictines to the patriarchal cathedral of San Pietro. Leprosy declined by the mid-1500s and the island was abandoned by 1601 when only the chaplain and some gardeners remained at the island to grow vegetables. In the second half of the 17th century the island was leased to various religious groups. In 1651 a Dominican order settled at the island after fleeing from Turkish-occupied Crete. Jesuits also briefly settled there. By the early 18th century only a few crumbling ruins remained.
Armenian period
Establishment In April 1715, a group of twelve Armenian Catholic monks led by Mkhitar Sebastatsi (, ) arrived in Venice from Morea (the Peloponnese), following its invasion by the Ottoman Empire. The monks were members of a Catholic order founded by Mkhitar in 1701, in Constantinople, the capital of the Ottoman Empire. The order moved to Modone (Methoni), on the southern shore of the Peloponnese, in 1703, after repressions by the Ottoman government and the Armenian Apostolic Church. In 1712 the order received recognition by Pope Clement XI. Victor Langlois wrote that a Venetian admiral and the Venetian governor of Morea, "sympathizing deeply with the fearful distress of the unfortunate community, yielded to their earnest entreaties for permission to embark on a government vessel which was about to leave for Venice."
On September 8, 1717, on the Feast of the Nativity of Mary, the Venetian Senate ceded San Lazzaro to Mkhitar and his companions, who agreed not to rename the island. He was reminded of the monastery on the island of Lake Sevan, where he had sought education earlier in his life. Upon acquisition, the monks began works of restoration of existing buildings on the island. The entire community then relocated to the island in April 1718 when the buildings on San Lazzaro became habitable. Mkhitar himself designed the plan of the monastery, which was completed by 1840. The monastery originally included 16 cells for monks, which were adjusted from the old hospital. The church's restoration lasted from May to November 1722. Mkhitar died in 1749. The bell tower was completed a year later, in 1750.
Napoleon
The Venetian Republic was disestablished by Napoleon in 1797. In 1810, he abolished all monastic orders of Venice and Italy, except that of the Mekhitarists in San Lazzaro. The Mekhitarist congregation was left in peace, according to some sources, due to the intercession of Roustam Raza, Napoleon's Mamluk bodyguard of Armenian origin. Napoleon signed a decree, dated August 27, 1810, which declared that the congregation may continue to exist as an academy. Since then, San Lazzaro has also been known as an academy, and sometimes referred to in Latin as Academia Armena Sancti Lazari.
Expansion The monastery has been enlarged significantly through land reclamation four times since the 19th century. First, in 1815, the Mekhitarists were permitted by Austrian Emperor Francis II to expand the island. The area north of the island was filled which doubled its area from 7,900 m2 to 13,700 m2. In 1836, a boundary wall around the island's newly reclaimed area was built. The channel of the boathouse was filled in 1912 and it was moved to the far western corner. The shoreline was straightened. These adjustments increased its area to 16,970 m2. San Lazzaro's latest major enlargement occurred in post-World War II period. Between 1947 and 1949, the island was expanded on the southeast and the southwest. The island now has an area of 30,000 m2 or 3 hectares.
20th century and beyond
The island was heavily affected by the unprecedented acqua alta of November 4, 1966. The flooded sea water entered the main church and flooded the enclosed garden for around 12 hours. The library and the manuscript depository were not affected by the flood and none of the churchmen suffered injuries.
A fire broke out on the night of December 8, 1975, which partially destroyed the library and damaged the southern side of the church, and destroyed two Gaspare Diziani paintings.
Between 2002 and 2004, an extensive restoration of the monastery's structures was carried out by the Magistrato alle acque under the coordination of Consorzio Venezia Nuova, an agency of the Italian Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport. It included restoration of the island's shores and its walls and the boathouse.
In 2017 the 300th anniversary of San Lazzaro's Mekhitarist order was celebrated on the island and in Armenia, including with a postage stamp and academic conferences.
San Lazzaro was heavily affected by a flood on November 13, 2019, the heaviest since 1966. The church, the central courtyard, and all the rooms on the ground floor were flooded, while the library, gallery, manuscript repository, and archives were unharmed. Armenian President Armen Sarkissian expressed solidarity with the monks, while Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan visited the congregation a week after the flood, expressing support and appreciation for their work.
In recent years, the island has hosted significant events. In 2015, it hosted the pavilion of Armenia during the 56th Venice Biennale, which was dedicated to the Armenian Genocide centenary and won the Golden Lion award in the national participation category. In 2021 the Aurora Prize ceremony took place there, with the attendance of Armenian President Armen Sarkissian, and featuring a performance by Andrea Bocelli.
Monastery
San Lazzaro is entirely occupied by the Mekhitarist monastery of San Lazzaro, which is the headquarters of the Armenian Catholic Mekhitarist Congregation. The monastery is known in Armenian as Մխիթարեան Մայրավանք, M(ə)khitarian Mayravank, which literally translates to the "Mekhitarist Mother Monastery" and in Italian as Monastero Mechitarista. The monastery currently contains a church with a bell tower, residential quarters, library, museums, picture gallery, manuscript repository, printing plant, sundry teaching and research facilities, gardens, a bronze statue of Mkhitar erected by Antonio Baggio in 1962, an Armenian genocide memorial erected in the 1960s, and a 14th-century basalt khachkar (cross stone) donated by the Soviet Armenian government in 1987.
The cloister of the monastery consists of a colonnade of 42 columns in the Doric order. There is a 15th-century water well in the center of the cloister, which is surrounded by trees and shrubs. A Phoenician and early Christian inscriptions, a first century headless statue of a Roman noble from Aquileia and other artifacts were found there.
The bell tower with an onion dome was completed in 1750. It is not attached to the church and stands alone near the northern side of the church.
The church
The church of San Lazzaro, although renovated several times through centuries, retains the 14th century pointed arch style. The church was restored extensively by Mkhitar in 1722, five years after the settlement of Armenian monks. He completely rebuilt the altar. Its apse was extended in 1899 primarily with an addition of neo-Gothic elements. The church has a neo-Gothic interior. It is three-naved, supported by 6 red marble columns. The main altar is in Baroque style. The three main windows of the altar's apse have stained glass which depict from left to right: Sahak Patriarch, Saint Lazarus, and Mesrop Mashtots. In the church, there are frescoes and paintings by Antonio Ermolao Paoletti depicting Saint Peter, Saint Paul, John the Baptist and Saint Stephen. The tomb of Mkhitar is located in the front of the altar.