In the ancient parchments, it is written that the chapel was very small, six paces wide, nine long, and ten feet high, but after about two hundred years, the population of Fossò had grown significantly and the need for a larger church clearly emerged.
It was therefore decided to begin the works while partly preserving the ancient structures. Three statues were placed above the façade: San Bartolomeo, San Lorenzo, and San Gaetano. The three traditional altars were set up: of the Holy Sacrament, of the Madonna, and of San Lorenzo. In 1836, a small chapel in honor of Sant’Antonio was added, and later one in honor of Santa Eurosia, invoked against hail. The church possessed many valuable furnishings that were sold over time, especially when money was needed to complete the renovation works.
Among the works of art that are still preserved, the fresco on the ceiling representing “The Glory of San Bartolomeo” deserves mention, a work attributed to Giambattista Canal, an artist active at the end of the eighteenth century. Also interesting, after recent restorations, is the altarpiece of the main altar with the “Martyrdom of San Bartolomeo.” This painting has been attributed to Pietro Antonio Novelli, an artist who was president of the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice.
After several years of neglect and oblivion, the church from the eighteenth century was the subject of a careful restoration, completed in 2005, which restored it to its former glory.
