Santa Lucia, Padua, Baroque church in Padua, Italy

Santa Lucia is a Baroque church in Padua featuring a monumental facade supported by giant pilasters and decorated with statues of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in niches. The interior houses religious artworks and opens daily for visitors and worshippers.

This place was founded in 964 and had to be rebuilt after its bell tower collapsed in 1634. In the 1700s, architect Girolamo Frigimelica made important updates to the building.

Inside, you will find paintings by Giacomo Ceruti showing Padua's patron saints and a work by Giambattista Tiepolo depicting Saint Luke as a painter. These artworks shape how the church looks and tell the story of its artistic importance.

The church stands on via Santa Lucia, sharing a small forecourt with the Scuola di San Rocco, whose oratory with 16th-century frescoes is to the left of the facade when facing the entrance. It is the only church in Padua holding perpetual Eucharistic adoration, so visits should respect silent prayer. The facade was declared at high risk of collapse after the 2012 earthquake and the church reopened only on 18 June 2017.

The church holds the tomb of the Minello de Bardi family, whose members Antonio and Giovanni were noted sculptors. Also buried here is Lombardo della Seta, friend and disciple of Petrarch, whose epitaph on the right exterior wall is now badly deteriorated. The building was long the seat of the guilds of fruit sellers and caulkers.