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Antonio Rizzo

Pure Renaissance architect

Scala dei Giganti, Palazzo Ducale

Antonio Rizzo (c. 1445–99) was a pure Renaissance sculptor and architect from Verona. He trained with Antonio Bregno in Venice ans is believed to have worked on the Palazzo Ducale's Arco Foscari on the Porta della Carta before spending several years on the lavish Certosa di Pavia in Lombardy before returning to Venice.

One of the most prolific sculptors sculptors in late 15th-century Venice, his work includes the Tron monument in the Frari and the portals of Sant'Elena and Sant' Aponal. Made chief architect or proto of the Palazzo Ducale, he also sculpted the famous figures of Adam and Eve on the façade, and the Scala dei Giganti and façades overlooking the palace's inner courtyard, as well as the façades facing Canal of Sighs.

In 1498, accused of misappropriating funds, he escaped to Cesena, where he died.

Early Renaissance Art

Sculptors

Text © Dana Facaros & Michael Pauls

Image by Dennis Jarvis, Creative Commons License