Thus, between 1579 and 1582, the Commission put out a call for proposals to replace the lost Paradise with a monumental canvas. The Commission received submissions from all of city’s leading artists, including Palma Giovane, Paolo Veronese, Francesco Bassano, and Tintoretto. In the end, it was Veronese’s and Bassano’s work which won the Commission over. Veronese’s proposal in particular proved enchanting. Taking a cue from Dante’s Divine Comedy, Veronese’s proposal depicts concentric rings of saints and blessed souls converging on the crowning of the Virgin on top. The colors are those of dawn; while the atmosphere feels ephemeral, almost haunting.

Veronese would die before completing the commission. As Bassano had yet to begin his portion, the Commission held another competition for the work in 1588. Over a decade after the fire, work was again at square one. This time, Tintoretto was chosen to provide the painting of Paradise. The artist was then at the high watermark of his career, having just completed his revolutionary narrative cycles at the Scuola di San Rocco.