The Ateneo Veneto is an “institution which, solely in the pursuit of social solidarity, aims to co-operate in the process and the dissemination of all aspects of science, literature, arts and culture” (Article 1 of its Charter).
The company is based in the old Scuola di San Fantin in the district of San Marco (Campo San Fantin), which used to be the seat of the Scuola dei Picai (or Scuola di San Girolamo).

The Ateneo Veneto di Scienze, Lettere e Arti was the result of a merger between the former Società Veneta di Medicina, Accademia dei Filareti and l'Accademia Veneta letteraria, decreed by Napoleon in 1812.
For more than a century it was seen as an important “reading-room”, it then became “lending library” in 1940 and a “catalogue of paper and Venetian articles” in the 1960s. Over the course of the 1900s, the Ateneo continued to add to its rich collection thanks to major donations and bequests from distinguished scholars. As part of its objectives, the Ateneo promotes the study of all matters connected to the conditions, needs and interests of Venice and the Veneto region.

After the flooding of Venice in 1966, the “Associazione Francia Italia” and to the Swedish "Pro Venezia" committee carried out the initial restoration work. More specifically, the “Associazione Francia Italia” restored the paintings by Palma il Giovane on the ceiling of the Aula Magna, while the “Pro Venezia” committee restored the façade of the school and its archives.

1800 - 2000 - - rev. 0.1.5