The magnificent church of Santa Maria della Salute dominates the entire right side of this painting. Silhouetted against the sky above the pediment of the portico are statues of the Virgin and Child and angels; on the distinctive scrolls are statues of the Apostles and, in the near foreground, St George and the dragon. The strong morning light shines across the Grand Canal on to the buildings opposite, leaving this side of the Salute in shadow. As a result, its architectural detail and sculptures are precisely yet subtly defined in a soft, reflected light.

The view is similar to that in RCIN 400520, from the abbey of San Giorgio, looking across the Rio della Salute to the Bacino. Canaletto has included the buildings across the Canal instead of bringing into view the famous buildings of the Piazzetta San Marco, but lowering their height to make the Salute even more impressive. On the left bank is a squero or boatbuilders' yard, the flames from the boiling pitch just visible against the flank wall of the seventeenth-century Palazzo Tiepolo. Just beyond this are the campanile of San Moisè, the Palazzo Treves dei Bonfili, the Palazzo Giustiniani and the Campanile in the Piazza San Marco. The Molo and the Riva degli Schiavoni can be seen further along the bank. Among the boats are the Doge's Fusta, with its distinctive gold and red striped awning, and a dredger in the middle distance. Canaletto seems to have changed his mind about some of the figures, possibly over several years, painting out two of those to the right of the seated boatmen in the foreground, and another on the pavement just behind them. Other alterations include painting out the masts of some of the boats to the left of the Dogana.

Signed on the moored barge in the centre foreground: ACanal F. 1744

Text adapted from Canaletto & the Art of Venice, 2017.