Napoleon's Early Art Thefts in Italy

Two other chapels in the cathedral should attract the Napoleonic eye, namely the family chapels of Emilei and Maffei: the Cappella Emilei (the third chapel on the nave’s right-hand side) and the Cappella Maffei (at the bottom of the nave on the left).Location: Piazza di Duomo. Open to the public.

Across the river, not far from the cathedral,the church of San Giorgio in Braida kept two paintings by Paolo Veronese requisitioned by the French. Knowing what to look for, the French art commissioners carved out eight bronze bas-reliefs by Andrea Briosco il Riccio in a small chapel in the back of the church of San Fermo Maggiore. Paolo Veronese was a local artist, and as there were plenty of his works around there were plenty to steal as well. The church of Madonna della Vittoria also lost one painting by the renowned artist.

San Giorgio in Braida The biggest losers in the French thirst for the most renowned art works were, as always, the churches. The church of San Giorgio in Braida lost the Martyrdom of St. George and Barnabas Healing the Sick, both by Paolo Veronese; only the former was returned to the church. Although the latter was never returned, a copy has nonetheless been made for the church. The church is one of the most blessed churches in Verona in terms of Italian masterpieces and, apart from the works by Veronese, includes works by Tintoretto and Brusasorci. San Giorgio in Braida was founded in 1447 on top of the ruins of a Benedictine monastery dedicated to St. George.

Madonna della Vittoria It was only natural that the art commissioners should seek out works by Paolo Veronese; he was after all probably the most celebrated artist to come out of Verona. It was consequently of high risk to be in possession of works by that particular artist, something the Church of Madonna della Vittoria was also to feel. Short-listed, Paolo Veronese’s The Deposition of Christ was later returned, and is now on display in the Castelvecchio.

San Fermo Maggiore That the French art commissioners often knew exactly what to look for was well illustrated by their raid of the Gothic church of San Fermo Maggiore. In a small rectangular chapel almost hidden behind the nave’s left wall is a mausoleum to the Della Torre family, adorned with eight small bas-reliefs cast in bronze. The bas-reliefs are copies. The originals are on display in the Louvre in Paris. The monument was constructed between 1516 and 1521 by Andrea Briosco (il Riccio) in honour of Girolamo della Torre, a physician and professor of medicine, along with his son Marcantonio, also a professor of medicine and a friend of Leonardo da Vinci. The bas-reliefs were inspired by Virgil's book, the Aeneid, and depict the journey of the dead soul into the underworld.

The church’s present form is largely attributable to the period in the church’s history when the Franciscans acquired the complex in 1261. Location: at Ponte Navi. Open to the public.