Gallerie dell'Accademia

The Gallerie dell'Accademia holds the most complete collection of Venetian painting from the 14th to the 18th century anywhere. It sits on the Dorsoduro bank of the Grand Canal, at the foot of the Ponte dell'Accademia, and was until 2004 shared with the art academy that gave it its name -- the Accademia di Belle Arti, since moved to the Ospedale degli Incurabili.

The museum occupies the former Scuola Grande di Santa Maria della Carità, oldest of the six Scuole Grandi, in a complex begun in 1343. It takes in the church of Santa Maria della Carità, whose Gothic facade Bartolomeo Bon completed in 1441, and a monastery Andrea Palladio later rebuilt.

Most of the collection arrived here by force of circumstance rather than purchase: when Napoleon suppressed Venice's religious houses and confraternities, their altarpieces were gathered into this one public gallery. The rooms are hung chronologically, so a visit traces Venetian painting from Gothic panels through Bellini, Giorgione, Titian, Tintoretto, and Veronese to Tiepolo and the view painters.

Among the works most often sought out are Giovanni Bellini's Madonnas, Carpaccio's St Ursula cycle, Titian's late Pietà, Veronese's Feast in the House of Levi, and Giorgione's Tempest. Leonardo's Vitruvian Man belongs to the collection but is shown only rarely, being too fragile for permanent display.

The museum sits directly beside the Ponte dell'Accademia, one of only four bridges across the Grand Canal, which can create foot-traffic bottlenecks on the approach during peak hours -- allowing extra time helps.

As with most Venice museums, photography without flash is generally permitted in the galleries but restricted for a small number of especially fragile works -- posted signage in each room states the rule that applies there.

The gallery stands on the Dorsoduro side of the Grand Canal, immediately at the southern foot of the Ponte dell'Accademia, a minute's walk from the Accademia vaporetto stop.

• Tickets: available online in advance or at the door; timed entry is worth booking in high season.
• Timing: the collection is large -- two hours is a realistic minimum, and considerably longer for anyone following it chronologically room by room.
• Hours: generally open Tuesday to Sunday with a shorter Monday, though state museum hours in Italy shift seasonally, so it is worth checking close to the date.