Heady rumours swirl like canal mists around this long-abandoned church named for San Zan Degolà, or St John the Headless, known rather less dramatically in English as St John the Baptist. On the south wall facing the campo is a sculpted medallion of a freshly severed head that presumably represents St John after his head was lopped off by Salome. But according to Venetian urban legend, this is an effigy of Biagio (aka Biasio) Cargnio, who had a butcher shop near here in the 16th century where the sausages contained a secret ingredient: children. When his recipe was discovered, he was promptly beheaded and quartered by the authorities, and his house and shop were demolished – yet somehow, one of the most pleasant waterfront walks along the Grand Canal remains named after him, not far from this church. After WWII, the church was retired from its job as a warehouse, and restorations uncovered a wooden ship’s-keel ceiling and some 11th- to 13th-century Veneto-Byzantine frescoes – best to see them now, since the damp interiors are steadily affecting their condition. In 1994, the church reopened with Russian Orthodox services.
