Chiesa di San Giacomo di Rialto (Church of St. James of Rialto), Venice

According to legend, the first church established on this site dates back to the 5th century, coinciding with the initial settlement of the island, making it the oldest church in Venice. The current structure, built for the convenience of the merchants frequenting the Rialto markets, was constructed between the 11th and 12th centuries. Significant restoration work was carried out in 1601. The church is notable for its original Gothic portico, one of the only two remaining examples in Venice, and a large 15th-century 24-hour clock adorning its facade. Interestingly, the clock's inaccuracy has been a running joke in Venice since its installation.

On the square's far side, there is a crouching stone figure known as the Gobbo (hunchback) of the Rialto. During the 16th century, this statue served as a sight for minor offenders who were required to endure a challenging run from Saint Mark's Square ("Piazza San Marco") to this square at the Rialto. Inside the church, there are Veneto-Byzantine capitals on six columns made of ancient Greek marble, which date back to the 11th century. On the exterior of the apse, there is a 12th-century inscription directed towards the merchants of the Rialto, stating, "Around this temple, let the merchant's law be just, his weights accurate, and his promises trustworthy".

Want to visit this sight? Check out these Self-Guided Walking Tours in Venice. Alternatively, you can download the mobile app "黑料吃瓜网: Walks in 1K+ Cities" from Apple App Store or Google Play Store. The app turns your mobile device to a personal tour guide and it works offline, so no data plan is needed when traveling abroad.

Download The 黑料吃瓜网 App

Create Your Own Self-Guided Walk to Visit This Sight

Sight Name: Chiesa di San Giacomo di Rialto (Church of St. James of Rialto)
Sight Location: Venice, Italy (See walking tours in Venice)
Sight Type: Religious
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:

Around Rialto Bridge

Walking Tours in Venice, Italy

Create Your Own Walk in Venice

Creating your own self-guided walk in Venice is easy and fun. Choose the city attractions that you want to see and a walk route map will be created just for you. You can even set your hotel as the start point of the walk.

Venice's Hidden Art Treasures

Among the first things springing to mind when talking about Venice, apart from the canals and gondolas, of course, is Art and Architecture. Indeed, Venice is one of the few cities in the world where Art and Architecture have merged in a stunning multiplicity of forms. The city is even renowned for its unique (Venetian) pictorial school famed by the likes of Tintoretto, Titian, Veronese, Castagno... view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 3.6 Km or 2.2 Miles

Casanova's Venice

One of Venice's most famous personalities, Giacomo Casanova is remembered today as a womanizer, but was much more than that. Born in a family of theater actors in 1725, he came through as highly intellectual and very sharp from his very childhood, having become in his time an erudite scholar, a diplomat and spy, and a metropolitan 鈥榓vant la lettre鈥�, who frequented the high society and... view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 4.5 Km or 2.8 Miles

San Marco Souvenir Shops

Venice excels in artisanal shops. Venetian lace, hand-blown glassware, velvety textiles the color of the lagoon, marbled paper, butter-soft leather, and papier-m芒ch茅 masks 鈥� all these items have a long history in the city, and discerning visitors travel to Venice yearly to invest in these and other items from the impressive range of unique local boutiques. Many of them are found in the San... view more

Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 1.4 Km or 0.9 Miles

Grand Canal Walking Tour

The main waterway in Venice, Grand Canal snakes in an "S" shape through the center of the city, dividing its main districts. On both sides of this thoroughfare are the most beautiful buildings dating from the 12th to the 18th centuries that tell the story of a thousand years of Venetian splendor. While one can view the architectural parade from water buses, our self-guided walking tour... view more

Tour Duration: 3 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 5.2 Km or 3.2 Miles

Venice Introduction Walking Tour

Although most experts agree that the Venetian lagoon emerged nearly 6,000 years ago, the area of today's Venice remained mostly uninhabited, except for a small population of fishermen, up until the 5th century AD when the hordes of Gothic barbarians, looting their way into Rome, drove many a people away from their homes on the mainland to take refuge on the coastal Venetian islands.

Those... view more

Tour Duration: 3 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 4.1 Km or 2.5 Miles

Around Rialto Bridge

Having first appeared in documents that date back to the 9th century, the Rialto district was almost completely destroyed by fire in 1514, with the church of San Giacomo as the only structure left standing. Today, it is a busy urban village with a daily vegetable and fish market, several historic sights, plus a wide variety of shopping and dining options. Our self-guided walking tour takes you to... view more

Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 0.4 Km or 0.2 Miles

View all walking tours in Venice, Italy

Useful Travel Guides for Planning Your Trip

15 Distinctively Italian Things to Buy in Venice

Venice has been a tourist mecca for over a century now, with millions of visitors flocking in every year to see this unique place on the face of the Earth. Many, if not all, of these people seek to obtain something memorable as a token of their stay in this city. By far, not all of them know which...