Francesco Zanotto (Venice, 1794-1863), an important Venetian art historian of the multiple interests, was barely known among Italian experts of the nineteenth century. First, the article examines Zanotto’s biography and career brief; he’s mostly known as a historiographer. Among his most important publications we quote «Pinacoteca dell’I.R. Accademia di Belle Arti di Venezia» (1831-1836), «Storia della pittura veneziana» (1837) and «Palazzo Ducale di Venezia» (1842-1861). Moreover, his publication about periegesis («Nuovissima Guida di Venezia e delle isole della laguna», 1856) was very useful not only for tourists but also for art historians, who searched for updated informations about Venice’s artistic heritage. On the other hand, the article considers Zanotto’s art catalogues on several Venetian private collections of paintings, among which some are completely unknown.