In 1574, seven years after the pictorial decoration of the Sala dell'Albergo was finished, the decision was taken to proceed the redecoration of the Sala Superiore, the Upper Hall. Tintoretto began to work on the ceiling canvases in 1575 and the first painting, The Brazen Serpent, was finished in August 1576. The decoration was completed in the summer of 1581.

The ceiling decoration consists of three large rectangular and ten oval paintings, all by Tintoretto, which are complemented by eight rhomboid canvases executed by Giuseppe Angeli in 1777-78 as substitution for Tintoretto's original tempera paintings. The ceiling paintings reflect a theme based on interaction between the Old and New Testaments and the charitable aims of the Brotherhood of San Rocco: "The salvation and healing of the suffering humanity through a miracle of the Old Testament which is a forerunner of the Redemption of mankind through the sacrifice of Christ on the cross".

The ceiling paintings are the following:

1. The Brazen Serpent (rectangular, in the centre)
2. Moses Drawing Water from the Rock (rectangular)
3. The Miracle of Manna (rectangular)
4. The Fall of Man (oval, around No. 2)
5. The Eternal Father Appears to Moses (oval, around No. 2)
6. The Pillar of Fire (oval, around No. 2)
7. Jonah Leaves the Whale's Belly (oval, around No. 2)
8. The Vision of Ezekiel (oval, at the side of No. 1)
9. Jacob's Ladder (oval, at the side of No. 1)
10. The Sacrifice of Isaac (oval, around No. 3)
11. Elisha Multiplies the Bread (oval, around No. 3)
12. Elijah Fed by the Angel (oval, around No. 3)
13. The Passover (oval, around No. 3)

Tintoretto painted ten large canvases for the long walls of the room (five on each), an altarpiece, The Apparition of St Roch, for the altar wall and two saints, St Roch and St Sebastian, for the wall opposite to the altar. The paintings on the walls depict various scenes from the New Testament. They are the following:

1. The Adoration of the Shepherds (on the wall opposite to the entrance)
2. The Baptism of Christ (on the wall opposite to the entrance)
3. The Resurrection of Christ (on the wall opposite to the entrance)
4. The Prayer in the Garden (on the wall opposite to the entrance)
5. The Last Supper (on the wall opposite to the entrance)
6. The Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes (on the entrance wall)
7. The Raising of Lazarus (on the entrance wall)
8. The Ascension (on the entrance wall)
9. Probatica Piscina (on the entrance wall)
10. The Temptation of Christ (on the entrance wall)

You can take a virtual tour of the rooms in the Scuola Grande di San Rocco starting from the homepage of the Scuola.

Preview	Picture Data	File Info	Comment
	View of the Sala Superiore 1576-81 Oil on canvas Scuola Grande di San Rocco, Venice	1120*850 True Color 192 Kb
	View of the Sala Superiore 1560 Oil on canvas Scuola Grande di San Rocco, Venice	1172*900 True Color 186 Kb
	View of the Sala Superiore 1576-81 Oil on canvas Scuola Grande di San Rocco, Venice	1312*1000 True Color 289 Kb
	View of the Sala Superiore 1560 Oil on canvas Scuola Grande di San Rocco, Venice	1154*800 True Color 194 Kb

• Paintings on the ceiling of the Sala Superiore (1575-77)
• Paintings on the walls of the Sala Superiore (1578-81)