Girolamo Manfrin

Girolamo Manfrin was a Dalmatian Italian entrepreneur active in Venice in the 18th century. He was born in Zara in the Republic of Venice. His origins are unclear.
V. Spreti traced his line back to a Manfredo created count in 1433.
He appeared in Venice for the first time in the 1760s. He struggled in Venice in the beginning, ending up in jail after he refused to reveal the names of the investors of the tender for conducting Venice's tobacco trade, which he had won. He spent more than a year in jail. He was later released and sent to his native Zara.
He again attempted to engage in the tobacco trade, winning a second tender. Later he became involved also in manufacturing. In 1788 he was able to buy the Palazzo Venier in Cannareggio. He had a famous art collection comprising the Portrait of Johannes Wtenbogaert by Rembrandt, today in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.