Palazzo Surian Bellotto, Baroque palace in Cannaregio, Venice, Italy

Palazzo Surian Bellotto is a Baroque palace on the Cannaregio Canal whose tall four-storey facade rises above its neighbours. Its central axis is shifted left, where two arched portals with mascarons sit in rusticated bands, matched on the noble floors by pairs of serlianas, the second-floor one partly walled up. The remaining windows have stone frames, balustrades and mascarons, and the top ends in a dentiled cornice.

Built in the 17th century for the Surian family of Armenian origin, the palace is attributed to architect Giuseppe Sardi, author of the nearby Palazzo Savorgnan. Sold to the Brescia-origin Bellotto family at the end of that century, it housed the French embassy in the 18th century. After the fall of the Republic, the 19th century brought decay and the loss of its sumptuous interiors.

The name joins two families: the Surians, of Armenian origin, who built the palace in the 17th century, and the Bellottos of Brescia, who bought it at the end of that century. Since 9 December 2016 the ground floor has housed Laguna Libre, an organic restaurant and jazz and world music club run with Veneto Jazz.

The palace faces the Cannaregio Canal, and its Baroque facade is best seen from the opposite bank or from a boat passing along the canal. The ground floor has housed Laguna Libre, an organic restaurant and jazz and world music club, since 9 December 2016. The upper floors are private homes and cannot be visited.

Philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau stayed in the palace during 1743 and 1744 while working as secretary to the French ambassador. This period in Venice proved formative for his thinking and later writings on society.